Self-cater Meals in a Hotel Room: What to Pack

Some suggestions from a Sangha friend for how you can prepare meals cheaply in a hotel if you bring a few small items:

• A flexible cutting board (lots of real estate for preparing meals and cutting bread and veggies but light and easy to fit in a suitcase). [I saw a thin MSR Alpine Cutting Board that rolls up at REI for $5 but haven't used one and didn't find any reviews from searching online.]
• One re-usable plate, bowl, and mug per person (also consider getting a mug at Jumbo market in Cascais and save weight and space in your suitcase). [For more about Jumbo and other shopping in Cascais, see Shopping in Cascais, Estoril & Carcavelos.]
• One set of knife, fork and spoon made of Lexan or other durable material. [Lexan is very strong, light and inexpensive.]
• A sharp knife, with a sheaf for safety, for cutting bread, veggies, cheese and so forth.
• A small can opener of some type in case you want to buy anything in a can.
• Resealable bags of several sizes.
• Clothes pins for closing bags. [Binder clips work well too.]
• Small scissors for getting into packaging.
• Extra shampoo or liquid soap for cleaning up after the meal. [Dr Bronner's all-in-one soap is another option; it comes in a 2oz plastic bottle with a flip top that's great for travel, and is Fair Trade and organic. You can use it as a shampoo, body soap, and dish soap. I just read that the company "caps all executive compensation at 5 to 1 to the lowest paid warehouse position, and dedicates all profits not needed for business development to worthwhile causes and charities worldwide."]
• Quick-drying scrubber for cleaning dishes.
• A bag for transporting the meal to an outdoor location for a picnic.

A hot pot can be used to heat water for tea, broth and veggies, canned soup and so on.