So I have to visit a city in the next few months for 4-5 days. Where I could not find any devotee or Govindas.
So I am thinking about how can I prepare for my trip.
I will be staying in a hotel with another colligue.
Should I stay just not nuts and home-prepared bread?
Your servant
PAMHO
CHMD JPS
Replies
Hare Krsna Prabhuji,
PAMHO.
Sorry for late reply. If you can cook, make theplas and take. YOu can have with yogurt purchased locally. If you can make/buy cookies, they will last. Make cake or some sweet. Basically, before eery trip, you will have to pre cook for 4-5 days.
Add milk, cornflakes, fruits, dry fruits to the diet.
If you can find an Indian store, maybe buy some Indian sweets and have.
Other option is to find out from word of mouth if there are devotees in the area you are travelling and try and get them to cook for you, even if it is for a charge.
If you are not able to sustain, have after offering. Carry tulsi leaves with you whihc are already offered. Add those to the food you have, after mentally offering them to the lord.
Best of luck.
Haribol,
YOur servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
Hare Krishna, PAMHO
Definetly you will be taking with you the dieties which you have? I assume you have deities with you. If not also you will take Krishna's photo atleast to the hotel. As soon as you land into the hotel. find a clean spot .. arrange a paper ( or small clean cloth) place the photo or deities. This much you would be doing. Then. I will suggest you to offer bhog daily 3 times to the photo or deity whatever you make to eat and have it as prasadam.
नमो ब्रह्मण्य देवाय गोब्राह्मण हिताय च ।
जगत् हिताय कृष्णाय गोविन्दाय नमो नमः ॥
You will welcome Lord to accept the food, Place a tulasi leaf before offering... I hope you will get some leaves ( or just can take some packed in icebox). and have it as prasadam. Whatever you have pls. offer first to Lord and have it as you already know.
Now coming to what foods which you can have which are easy to make without much preparation time are.
Breakfast you can offer milk and some nuts+ banana = > very filling and good breakfast
lunch you can have some rice + curd and home made pickle if you have. ( for rice take with you a small rice cooker just enough for one person) you can plug into the electric source and cook it.
( use mineral water to cook rice), and get curd ( yogurt from the shop Amul curd is available in India small containers). offer tulsi patta and have prasadam. Very fulfilling lunch.
dinner also you can make some rice and have curd rice.
breakfast-- next day. make the rice cooker pot clean. pour some water + milk bring it to a boil add some oats and cook takes just 3-5 min. , it is too much filling
if you add nuts, banana , apple and some honey it can go even upto evening . curd rice in the lunch
and night you can have milk with 2 bananas and apple or have lassi if you have availability. or make oats again if you are still hungry.
breakfast- milk with cereal/museli can add toppings like banana to make it heavy.
lunch- can make curd rice or Kichdi. If you are willing to make
same cooker pot, put some water, washed mung dal and rice small portions just sufficient enough for a single person. like a hand ful of rice and half hand full of mung daal add water 3 glasses and cook and add simple salt and ghee.. offer to Lord with tulsi patta and have it as prasadam.
night can survive with 2 bananas and milk or lassi. very fillling.
Its just 4 days so you could somehow adjust.
Items to pack are a little huge but these days very compact things are available.
disposable paper plates, glasses and spoons easily available everywhere in any supermarket.
https://www.amazon.in/Preethi-Perfect-Wonder-0-6-Litre-300-Watt/dp/...
Rice cook only 1/2 liter perfect for single person can cook just 300gm of rice. you can take carry it along and buy there itself some rice and mung daal which is available everywhere.
Ghee and salt also u get everywhere.
you can buy some bread and apply butter and jam and have it also.
Jut see the ingredients if they don't have eggs or any other not allowed ingredients so that it can be safely used.
Whatever you eat just offer to the Lord and have it.
If you don't get tulsi patta also. not a issue. Just offer it to Lord and accept it as prasadam.
small blender is you can carry is so useful..daily you can make milk shakes with various fesh fruits as breakfast. or whenever you feel hungry. It has USB port you can connect to ur laptop and charge it.
Check ingredients if there is no egg or anything which is not allowed then you can offer to Lord and have it a prasadam.
Lord only sees are you remembering Him while you enjoy anything .. or not.
You can easily survive 4 days somehow. not an big deal. In India so many things are available to eat. WOW Lord is going to enjoy this trip for sure :-)
Hare Krishna.
Thank you so much matagi for such detailed advice. Actually, I can cook Krishna Prasadam ( I have been cooking from an early age as I have visited many places alone.) But now being in the Boston USA I feel afraid the hotel might not allow me to cook and might give panalty if I cook in the hotel. Moreover, I have to stay with one Chinese that I am a little unsure of. Thank you again Matagi, for your time and suggestion.
Hare Krishna
CHMD JPS
If you know cooking then there isn't any problem., and in Boston USA , I am sure there are hotels which have cooking range also available.. Book such hotel rooms.
Try.
Rest Krishna will take care, where there is a will there is always a way.
Hare Krishna
Ideally It is good to cook for Lord and offer with tulsi patta. But as I am understanding from your question that you don't know to cook.
But then, rice cooker is easy to operate and rice and mung dal neend not be carried also. they are available everywhere.
Just try ask you mother or some elders to give instructions how to use the cooker.. and how to make simple kichidi. If you don't like putting all these store brought stuff to Lord.
Kichdi simply fulfilling and easy to make, similarly curd rice. nothing much to do. so easy peasy. Heheh... I don't know about you but I offered all these mentally just now to Lord. hey, Lord loves icecreams. I always offer him icecream I feel he loves it. ask yourself. ( eggless icecream).. eggless cakes also. if only you had Govindas' eggless cakes.. wow.
try. good luck .
Hare Krishna.