Drift Hotel is in the historic district of San Jose del Cabo. It's surrounded by art galleries and fantastic restaurants and bars. The hotel is for those who prefer culture over all inclusive resorts. It's social atmosphere encourages guests to interact with each other, especially at night while enjoying “mezcanelas" at the mezcal bar​. On Thursdays and Saturdays when they open their gate to the public, you meet friendly locals who are more than happy to point you in the right direction for your next adventure, tasty bite, or refreshing drink. 

Upon ringing the buzzer outside the large black gate, we were greeted by a hotel staff member who escorted us to the mezcal bar. Another staff member took our bags up to our room while we relaxed at the bar with our greeter turned bartender. We enjoyed mezcal while our greeter told us about the hotel and the San Jose del Cabo area.

He walked us up to our room where our bags and glorious room was waiting for us. 

I love cool, well designed, well decorated hotels. (Who doesn't?!) And the NYLO Warwick/Providence is just one of those hotels.

The rooms are chic, modern, warm, and cozy. It's like walking into a warm hug. The highlight of the room is the GIANT bed with the extra soft pillows. The shower has a rainfall shower head and handheld shower head. There's a small sitting area for unwinding and a desk to do work at.

The highlight of the hotel facilities is the sauna in the gym. It's a great spot to relax your muscles after a workout in the gym with windows overlooking the river. 

The restaurant and bar downstairs is gorgeous. The concrete floors, walls, and ceiling provide a modern, industrial look, while wooden tables, white couches, blue suede chairs, and coral chandeliers provides warmth and character. There's a pool table at the far end for those looking to play a few rounds with friends. 

​ When the weather is warm, the outside patio area is the perfect spot to relax by the river and watch the duck swim by.

I look forward to my stays here, mostly so I can snuggle into that warm cozy bed after a long work day.

Want to snuggle in that glorious bed yourself? You can book NYLO Warwick/Providence here. ​

Across the street is Not Your Average Joe's, where they serve gluten free clam chowdah (chowder for those not from back east) and gluten free bread baskets. 

I went to Cabo with my boyfriend Josh at the end of April for (gluten free) food, drinks, and fun in the sun. We opted to stay in San Jose del Cabo instead of Cabo San Lucas. San Jose del Cabo is much more low key than crazy party central Cabo San Lucas. We preferred the vibes of San Jose, filled with art, narrow streets, and small restaurants and boutique hotels. 

Featured:
Drift Hotel
La Lupita Taco and Mezcal
12 Onzas Tap House
​Mariscos El Chino
Mixology 
El Catrin, Tacos Y Mas

​I stayed at The Beach Waikiki Boutique Hostel, a hostel on the southern end of the Waikiki area. I found it to be the perfect spot to stay, being only a block from the beach and 10 minutes from the center of the tourist area.

The hostel offers free tours every day of the week, and if I had more time, energy, and less desire to hunt and devour all the delicious gluten free food in Honolulu, I might have gone on the tours.

​I stayed in the 4 bed female dorm with an attached bathroom. The bathroom was all tile and it was nice and clean. Housekeeping came everyday to clean the bathroom and floors.

If you haven't had a huckleberry, I'm sorry. Get your butt up to the Pacific Northwest and get some. My favorite ways to enjoy huckleberry is via huckleberry jam. I typically picked up my huckleberry jams at the Multnomah Falls gift shop. I also bought huckleberry coffee while there, another delightful way to enjoy the huckleberry flavor.

Salmon is quiescently Pacific Northwest. It's what most think of when dining on Pacific Northwest foods. I personally love mine smoked. You can also enjoy it cooked on cedar wood with lemon. Another favorite is to have it as sashimi with gluten free soy sauce. Smoked, cooked, sushi, just have some. 

These little morsels of goodness are just the right amount of sweet and have a texture of a real pastry. They're made with almond flour, making them safe for Celiacs. Enjoy one without feeling like you're missing out as your travel buddies chow down on their gluten-y pastries.

Duck can be found on almost every restaurant menu in France. Ducks popularity in France is the equivalent of finding chicken on every USA menu. Beware of sauces though! Many are made with a roux (flour). The duck was usually so exquisite and moist, you really didn't need a sauce. 

Busted: I was bracing myself for terrible food so I booked a hotel with a kitchenette, but after a couple of meals out, it felt silly to cook. The food was awesome! The food was awesome. We dined on Thai, Indian, burgers, fish and chips, and pho. Every meal was delicious and not too pricey. A gluten free burger at Honest Burger with fries and onion rings was £15 . I personally dub London a top food spot and a place I would visit specifically to enjoy the food. 

You know what I miss? Fried chicken. The other thing I miss? A GOOD gluten free hamburger bun. One that's soft and moist. Well I found both in one glorious friend chicken sandwich at Honest Burger in London.

Honest Burger is a chain of burger restaurants in the London area serving up beef, chicken, and veggie burgers with a side of rosemary "chips" (American translation: French fries). During the week I was visiting London they were also serving up Keralan Fried Chicken sandwiches. A fried chicken breast (or thigh?) when served on their heavenly, fluffy gluten free bun is 100% gluten free. Their fryers fry only gluten free items so no worries about cross contamination. That also means you can enjoy their onion rings. Yippee!!! 

At Del Sur in San Diego, lead bartender Sabrina gave us the inside scoop of how to make a perfect prickly pear margarita. It starts with a generous pour of blanco tequila, two ounces to be exact, followed by a house made prickly pear puree and lime agave mix made fresh everyday, then a touch of triple sec for a little extra sweetness. It's shaken to perfection and the glass is rimmed with black charcoal salt creating a beautiful visual contrast with the pink/purple drink.
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Wonderful co-owner Kate provided us with an array gluten free and vegetarian options to enjoy with our drinks.

What's better than gluten free French toast for breakfast? Enjoying a huge helping of gluten free French toast at the Pacific Beach Fig Tree Café in their gorgeous outdoor restaurant surrounded by flora and fauna.

The Fig Tree Café serves up a variety of gluten free and vegetarian options at their beautiful outside eatery in the San Diego area. Their staff members are well versed in handling dietary restrictions and they take cross contamination seriously, ensuring they use different containers, gloves, and cooking areas.

About 80% of the menu is gluten free, or can be made gluten free, so there are a lot of options to choose from. 

The star of the menu are the French toasts. From the traditional to the exquisite, including a stuffed French toast with mascarpone cheese topped with mangos and strawberries. They really do have a French toast to delight everyone. The gluten free version is made with gluten free cinnamon-raisin bread (yum!) and there's no extra charge. Gluten free-ers wallets rejoice! 

No list for Mexico would EVER be complete without tacos. It's number one on the list and rightly so. Tacos are a staple in Mexico and you can find it on almost every street corner, and you'll probably find several vendors vying for your business. Also luckily for you gluten free-ers, most stands and shops use corn tortillas. And even more lucky for all of us foodies, most stands hand make their corn tortillas daily and sometimes on the spot. Don't miss these mouth watering treats. 

Best Gluten Free Pizzas
Smart Flour Foods and Spinatos
​Gluten free pizza is making incredible strides. There were a few vendors featuring their pizzas and they were all delicious. However, Smart Flour Foods and Spinatos lead the pack for exceptional pizzas. Smart Flour Foods crust was thin and had the right crispiness. Spinatos excelled in the sauce, seasoning, and toppings. Their tomato, basil, and garlic pizza was to die for. 

The Expo is the biggest gluten free and allergen friendly event in the United States!
Whether you're looking for specialty products that taste great or trying to learn how to cook and bake to meet your dietary needs, the Expo is the place to be!​

I'M GOING TO GOOGLE LOCAL GUIDES SUMMIT THIS YEAR!!!
I screamed when I saw my acceptance letter. Ever since I heard about last year's summit, I made it a mission to work towards becoming a top local guide contributor. 
So what is a Google Local Guide? It's like being a top Yelper, but for Google Maps. You write reviews, you add photos, answer questions about a business, and add missing places to the map. Local Guides work to make Google Maps the most robust and accurate database of information on places. And Google Maps truly earns that title. 

​While in port in Natchez Mississippi my cruise director partner and our shuttle driver decided to have lunch in town. Luckily our boat docks close where there several restaurants to choose from.

On this particular day we chose the Pig Out Inn, a casual BBQ spot with delicious food, huge portions, and adorable décor.

As a road warrior for work and an avid leisure traveler, I've become a sort of a packing pro. So much so that my friends have called upon me to help them back their luggage for their trips. They also ask for advise on what are the best bags, accessories, and gizmos to make your traveling life easier. I love sharing these tips with my IRL friends, and I want to share it with my blog friends! Over the next month I'm going to share my top packing tips.

Today's post is going to discuss basic bag organization tips. How to keep organized and pack efficiently.

Casado literally means “married man”, because casado is a typical Costa Rican meal that married men would eat at home.  You don’t have to beg a local though to invite you into their home to enjoy this meal. These typical meals can be found at any Costa Rican “soda” (small restaurants). The meals usual consist of white rice, meat, black beans, plantains, salad, and tortillas. Makes sure the tortillas are corn to ensure it’s gluten free.  ​

I wish I could go back to Costa Rica just for the juices. Well juices and all the adventures. I could not believe how incredibly fresh, delicious, and fun the juices were. There are so many to choose from, including passion fruit (maracuya), papaya, mango, guanabana (soursap), pineapple (pina), and they were all incredible. ​