Hi everyone,
so, I have my first appointment 24/1. It is so close! I am anxious, scared, excited, but mostly scared as I have never been outside Europe before, and alone, to say nothing about the pain, fatique etc. I have a weird plane ticket though - I depart 21. from Prague and go back 28/1. So, I will have to stay in LA the whole week! It is because the price of the ticket, they are for some reason cheaper if you stay longer. But that was probably a stupid thing to do, because when I bought the ticket, I did not really think about the hotel price (huh, brain fog is my excuse?):).
So, I am looking for any advice regarding accommodation. The hotel is not my option, unfortunately. I checked out hostels and it looks I will have to stay in 6 bed dorm with some other people, I can not afford anything that is more than 30 USD per night. Well, I guess I could survive that, but I would rather have some privacy... I really do not feel like backpacker party every night. My fault, but any help would be strongly appreciated!
Second thing is the food... I can have my own on board, but I change the plane in NY and from that moment, I am not allowed to have any "foreign" food, not even in my suitcase (that is what I have been told). That means I will have to eat at the NY airport (5 hours waiting there) and when I arrive to LA at night (11 PM) I am gonna be starving... With no food in stock. I would love to stick to the diet, so anyone any advice how to deal with this? I think that I should rather "cheat" than become a zombie, but it depends with what you cheat I guess.:)
Any tips for cheap and IC friendly restaurants in LA? Healthy food stores (I know about the Whole Foods)? What did you eat during your stay?
Things I must see in LA? (I really love the nature and I do not like big cities much, ironically):). But I guess that I would like to enjoy the spirit of the city, too. Anyway to be honest LA is HUGE and I am scared of it.
Does anyone have an idea how much it costs to rent a car per day? I was trying to google that, but it always said something like "no cars available" within the dates I filled in, and they have no price lists on their webpages... Maybe that is too expensive for me, I will use the public transportation mainly, but I thought it would be nice to actually see something while I am there. Maybe I will just feel bad and I will have to stay in bed the whole time, who knows. I am just trying to find something to look forward to.
I am starting to write down questions/info for my appointment, I have found a lot of useful stuff here already!
Funny thing is the weather. I am gonna leave Prague with around 0 celsius (30 fahrenheit) and arrive into full summer... (Well, those temperatures are summer for me). And then back to frosty Europe. That´s gonna be a shock I guess!:)
Thanks for any advice!!
Hello! I have written to you my advices in private! Get better!
Hi Aya- Congrats on booking your appointment! I think you're very brave to travel to LA from Prague. It is well worth it, even though it is an expensive trip. When I went to LA last spring from the east coast of the US, I found a good place to stay using a website called airbnb (airbnb.com). Basically people who want to rent out a room in their house or their whole house post on the site and you can rent a place for the time you need. I had a little guest house to myself, and it was great because I could cook food there and it was cheaper than a hotel. I think it was around $85 a night. $30 a night is pretty minimal, but you may be able to find a shared place with your own room for that cost and you'd have a kitchen and be able to cook for yourself. You can choose the area of LA that you want to look for a place in, I'd suggest being near bomamed so you don't have to drive.
Being without a car in LA is tough, it's really a driving city. Maybe you could rent a car for a day or something so you'd get to see things a bit?
Re: the layover in NYC. Is it at JFK airport? Depending on the terminal, there's actually some decent food there. Nothing fantastic, but there are some salad bars and you could probably get a hamburger or grilled chicken.
Good luck with your plans!
Claire
hi aya. you are truly brave to come here from so far away...the thought of an hour drive scares me. there are couple of places you must check out and it's inexpensive. there are 3 places you can visit in one day since they are so near to each other. it's the 3rd street promenade, venice beach, and santa monica pier (the boardwalk). you'll see amateurs performing along the streets. for 3rd street promenade, i recommend going on a friday or a saturday evening (it does get a bit crowded, but there are more performers). for venice beach, it's better to go during daytime over the weekend because you'll see amateurs performing there (you'll get the true essence of L.A.). for santa monica pier, you can get on rides such as a mini rollercoaster, bumper car, ferris wheel <-recommand, and other rides. also, another place to visit is the hollywood boulevard. i would say a "must do" if you are in L.A. this is where you'll see all the gold hollywood stars on the sidewalk. all these places i've mentioned have ton of stores to shop, but if you want to get some souvenirs, it's better to purchase them either at venice beach or hollywood boulevard.
here are the links:
http://downtownsm.com/
http://www.venicebeach.com/
http://www.santamonicapier.org/
http://www.hollywoodchamber.net/
Flygirlsam would be a good person to ask, she's a pilot out of JFK. Nancy is someone that offered her home to people traveling on here once. I forget her screen name...like qec something something.
So exciting!! I have to tell you, there is a salad bar in JFK, so if your layover is long enough, you can def find something.
WOW! Just wanted to say I am so glad you are going to LA.
I would love to go to LA for a week. It is so beautiful there, I'd be happy just sitting at the beach and not doing much of anything. I found the public transportation busses to be very easy and cheap to use. I also did a lot of walking but I was feeling great then and able to walk far.
Best of luck!
And it can be initimidating for someone new. Hmm... what do you like to do, what are your interests since you will have time? If you have some particular interests, I can share ideas on what to see. Personally, if you have time, I would take the Amtrak train to Santa Barbara for a day. My son and I took it from San Diego a year ago right before I got IC. It's 1.5 hours from LA driving and the train is clean and has clean bathrooms and drops you into the heart of SB. This is paradise! Beaches, sightseeing, it has an old Spanish Style architechture which is truly how old Califoirnia is known for... It is a laid back sleepy town with a small zoo which is nice. It also has a Farmer's Market on Tuesdays on State Street. Amazing selections...
LA has nice locales but there is nothing like SB. Or, I would go to San Diego. It is my hometown, beaches are cleaner/nicer/not so busy/populated as the ones in LA. I live near Carlsbad which is a tourist area in Northern SD. I would like to help but the location is far and I work.. I'm sorry that I cannt.
SD FREE attractions: Coronoado Island: Hotel Del Coronado. Its a landmark. you can take the Amttrack to Downtown and then to the island via Bus.
Balboa Park (museums, lots of gardens, walking, spanish architecture), artists. Its very nice and beautiful. There is also the World Famous SD Zoo (I think its $30 USD for entrance)
SD Seaport Village: Free, has shops right on the bay.. you can actually take the ferry over to Coronado and then take the bus to Hotel Del (its about a 15 min bus ride)
La Jolla - more beach side communities to get the true feel of CA living. Yes, its touristy but personally, if you come to CA, you may find LA dirty and too busy... but that is just me, this is why I moved from LA 22 years go. If you are interested, I can give your more details and locals on where to eat.
LA eateries: Pollo Loco (ask them for plain chicken).
There are plenty of Asian foods eateries which are chep, you can ask them for plain chicken and plain rice.. and steamed veggies.
Zankou Chicken (google location) - its a mediterranean food chain where the chicken is roasted (delicious, just need to take the skin off but the chicken should not flare you, I have tried it with IC). I think they have rice... we usually go there for the chicken. They have an amazing garlic/lemon sauce but we cant have that.
I will think of more food places in LA or ask my brother. I just havent eaten out in LA in a long time... Good Luck. If you get lost, feel free to call me (send me your personal email address and I will pickup the phone and help you out as best I can). I'm 2 hours from LA though but know LA, SD, OC and SB well.
Oh, and the weather this week has been seasonally warm. mid 80 degrees. this is about 10 to 15 degrees warmer than usual.
to stay with my family, Aya. :) I live about 3 hours from LA in a small town in the country. My husband and I with my 19 year old son and our two year old daughter live in one house on 2 1/2 acres of land, and my two sons and their wives live in two other homes with my two grandchildren on our property. (I am very blessed.)
I have an appointment with Dr. B on the 24th of January, too. It would usually be a phone interview for me, but I can go and see her in the office, and then you can come home with me, if you like. You could see a bit of the city on the first part of your stay, and some of the country on the second part of your stay. :) My husband and I could take you back to the airport when your flight is scheduled to leave on Saturday. I love to cook from List 1 and would love to cook for you. My house is full of life, so it can get noisy at times with my children and grandchildren, two goats, one dog, and one cat. And we do have only one bathroom in our house, but my sons have bathrooms in their homes if I get desparate. :)
We would be so pleased to have you stay with us, Aya. We have had students from China, Japan, and France stay with us over the years as my older children were growing up. I have such fond memories of their stays. Send me your email address if this is something you would like to do. Your trip is so worth all your effort. Dr. B is amazing. I am so thankful to God for her!
Mrs A- Can I come live with you too? (just kidding LOL) But really I need some of your positive energy!! IS it your faith that helps you?
Mrs. A, you are an angel!! Your home sounds so wonderful! I wish I lived in California so I could help others like this... and have appointments with Dr. B in person! You are amazing, and I hope Aya takes you up on your offer.
It was not easy, but so wonderful to have someone walk with us through the entire adoption process in such a foreign country. We would love to help Aya here in our country if she would like. As my mom loves to say, "I love helping people who are helping themselves." Aya is sure doing just that. When I was in pain going just three hours away to Dr. B, I kept thinking about all those women who flew from such far distances to see her.( I learned about her from a gal who came from England.) I knew if others were coming this far to see Dr. B, then she was an excellent doctor and worth all the effort.
Deir, you can come and live with me. :) And, yes, it is my faith in Jesus Christ which sustains me and keeps me uplifted. I would be lost without Him.
Adriane, I think we live close to one another! I am about 45 min to 1 hr from San Diego. Maybe we could meet at Whole Foods sometime? We go there about once a month. I love that place. I never thought I'd be saying that about a health food store; boy, I sure have changed over the years. :)
Hi Mrs A,
Wow, I would really love to! I live in San Marcos, close to Carlsbad. Where are you? I usually shop at Sprouts in San Marcos (same as Whole Foods but much more affordable). I'm there three times a week since I work a few blocks away and also I'm 2 miles from work and home. But They just opened up a Whole Foods in Encinitas, I ran in there late one night just to get a supplment I ran out but I didnt get a chance to peruse the aisles... I would really like to have helped Aya but I just got back to work from the company closing for 10 days and cant take the days off. If you are within the same area, would definately like to meet on a weekend? Thank you for extending your home, I was hoping someone close to DR. B's office would. My husband and I just spoke about it but being that he works two jobs, I'm working FT, and the reality that its 2 hours away, we just couldnt. It woud be nice to meet Aya and you if she is open to staying with you. I agree, its faith in God, I will have to find the link to a post I just read a few days ago about an inspirational speaker and send you... it reminds me of your kindness. I better get back to work.
What a lovely offer Mrs A. The world needs more people like you!
i agree.
thank you mrs. a! :oD
Dear Mrs A.,
I have seen in this forum that you are a very kind and generous woman. It was very nice of you to host Alena in your home. I would like to make contact with you but unfortunately I cannot e-mail you in private. Please e-mail me : zsuzsanna.laczko@t-online.hu
Thank you, and I am waiting for your private e-mail.
I have sent you my private email. We look forward to having Alena stay with us. :)
It would be wonderful to meet you. I am about 45 minutes from you, just outside of Escondido. My husband works in Vista. I love Sprouts, too, and often go to the one in Escondido. But we go to the Sprouts in San Marcos, too, because I love going to Marshals over there. :) I would definitely love to meet you there sometime! The weekend would be good for me, too.
Ms A, thank you for your generosity. I was thinking about offering Aya some of our hotel points, but I would not be able to cover the whole week. Glad you came forward.
I could not understand many Californians who I know who would never want to move anywhere but stay in California as if there are no other places on earth other than SD, SF, Silicon Valley, or LA. Sometimes it is hard to tell if someone is being honest or just cocky.
After visiting California, I understand now. I got it! They were serious. I did not believe it until I saw it. :)
I know not all California is that nice, but what I saw was beautiful.
I am about ready to jump on a plane from Ohio and come meet you ladies in Sprouts in California...lol. Although our winter has been mild, I would love to spend some more time in that lovely state;) So impressed with the generosity! Talk about healing through kindness;)
Mrs. A,
Here is the website which I stumbled upon found this week. I read this particular speaker's article and then I read your generosity above. God works in mysterious ways and what you have offered I truly believe is His work. It's made me smile all day. Thank you for your generosity. I look forward to meeting you in person and getting to know you and helping you through this illness even if its merely listening and understanding exactly what you are going through.
http://www.healyourlife.com/blogs/wayne-dyer-blog/all-gods-children
And yes, ladies, we can meet at Sprouts. :- ) Its where I initially spent alot of time asking the ladies that work there to help me find supplements for IC.
for the website. So thoughtful of you. And it would be so grand if we could all meet at Sprouts, but I am sure thankful we can "meet" over the blog fence here. Many a time someone's words on here have sustained me during a difficult day.
When I do head over to Sprouts, I will let you know Adriane, and maybe we could meet up. That would sure be grand.
Hi ladies,
What a nice thing! Yes, I would really like to meet with you both. : ) Unfortunately, I work all day Thursday & Friday. Friday afternoon, my husband and I have an appt for my son at 2pm that I've had to reschedule twice since I wasnt feeling well. Can we meet say 4:30 or 5pm this Friday?
Mrs. A - if you read this, I will ask Lynn today if she can give you my personal cell phone # this morning so you can contact me. If you can call the office so she can give you my # please. I will explain to her why. Looking forward to it ladies!! If Friday doesnt work, then Sat morning/afternoon or Sunday? I dont know when your flight leaves... Cant wait to meet you both.
Note: There is a really nice lake with a park close to Sprouts where we can sit down and chat. Its in the neighborhood where I live and take my son during the weekend, but we can meet at Sprouts (just a thought).
Adriane
i just want to say that whenever i come on here, my heart is filled with so much love and happiness. i can feel the kindness in each of you.
all of us are truly blessed to have found dr. b and all of us to get through this difficult time. i love the sisterhood we have established here.
i love you sisters from another mother!
I agree Junie! I don't post very often, but tend to just read others posts to help lift my spirits! This has not been an easy year in any stretch of the imagination! I am greatful and blessed to have been lead to this site and starting treatment with Dr B! Nice to have a group of ladies that understand what you are going through when my husband can't always wrap his head around this disease and be as supportive as I need him to be. Not the correct thread, but thanks Mrs. A for all the great recipies! Can't wait to try them out!
Hi everyone!
First and most importantly, I have to say a big THANK YOU for all your tips, helpful thoughts and positive energy. I think I am going to print out this entire thread so I have the information on hand and also for the positive vibes.:) I was so so surprised and grateful now!
I am sorry I did not reply sooner, but I am having terrible migraine headache (btw. has Matia helped anyone with migraines? I have been having them from my childhood and it progressively gets worse and more frequent)...
Mrs.A, I am so grateful for your offer! This sounds just great. I love nature, and animals, and I was a bit afraid of being alone in LA I have to say. Now I am slowly starting to look forward to my journey:) My e-mail is cernaale@gmail.com. You are amazing and I think I am really blessed that I am getting an opportunity to meet you in person!
And I have to send a lots of positive energy back over the ocean to all of you, esp Adriane, Junie and Claire for such an amount of information - wow, now I feel sorry I just have a week!:) And also to others, who sent me a private message.
This is really a great community of good people. I am impressed.
Hello Aya! I also suffer from migraines. I have more ocular migraines that make me feel dizzy, nauseous, tired and out of sorts. I started getting migraines in my mid teens, and progressively got more frequent. Since starting treatment with Dr B I only get one a month and initially with starting the diet went a couple months without one. This too should get better as treatment progresses.
Wishing you all the best with your trip to LA! You will love it, and Matia too!
Hi cprince!
Thanks a lot for your reply! One migraine a month sounds fine, and months without one is a pure heaven!:) (Well, without IC only):). My migraines last 2-4 days and I get 2-3 a month, so it is a lot of time being down, not able to do anything really... It started to get even worse just before my IC started, so I guess it is linked somehow. I wish you the very best and thanks for the hope!
I am so happy to have you stay with us. My family as well. They have been asking me the last couple of days if you had responded and were coming. I am so sorry you have been suffering with migraines. They are so debilitating.
Have you started on List 1 yet? If so, are there any foods on there that you don't tolerate? I will contact you by private email so you have my contact information. I am only three hours away, so if you have any problems you are not alone. We are very close. My husband is from LA and can navigate the freeways very easily. I, on the other hand, do not navigate the freeways so easily in big cities. :) So my friend will take me to my appointment and drive us both back home. You will love her, she has been so supportive to me with this difficult condition and was the one who took me to my initial appointment with Dr. B. After my appointment even she loved Dr. B and wished she could go to her. :)
Dear Mrs.A!:)
Thank you so much again! It sounds so nice and comforting, it is 1:00 in the morning here and I am totally uplifted!:) I am looking forward to meeting you, your friend and your family!
I have started the diet couple of weeks ago and it has been tough. Mainly because I used to be a vegetarian (7 years), so it was a real turn around. And I was used to eat lots of fruit (not very sweet ones as I followed kind of anti-candida diet, but still). But, I have to say that the diet does not seem to have a big effect on me, at least not yet. I really slipped during Christmas though, it is a horrible time to stick to any diet I think.:) But I am back on the track now. I think that I really need the guidance - it is hard for me to be strict to myself.:)
I do not really know if there is something I do not tolerate, because my condition seems to be up-and-down no matter what I eat. I am sure that I react to stress, lack of sleep and just generally not having enough rest. I had some tests done and it revealed that I am allergic to gluten and egg whites - but I do not really observe any difference regarding how I feel after consuming eggs or spelt. Anyway I am trying to choose rice over spelt if I can, eggs are essential in my diet and the allergy should not be that severe (that s what I was said), so I eat them a lot.:) I will have to ask Matia about this I think, if there´s time. And it would be great to discuss some of those things with you too if possible, as I am still totally new to all this!
Many warm greetings from Europe!!
Aya, how did your appointment go? I've been thinking of you. I hope you're having a pleasant time in the US, and I'm sure you're enjoying your time with Mrs. A!
Hi Adriane! Hope you will be able to read this, as I can not contact you directly via e-mail. Here I am in Mrs. A's wonderful home and we were speaking about meeting with you - are you available tomorrow or friday? We can meet you at Sprouts.