Once your family and friends know you've become a tyrophile they'll always expect you to bring cheese. Not to mention, you'll feel somewhat bereft if you end up in a place where no one's ever heard of real Parmigiano- Reggiano. Here are a few tips to make sure all your travels are well accompanied by good cheese.

Cheese as Traveling Companion

Almost all train stations, bus stations, and airports in Europe sell abundant and varied types of cheese because Europeans are used to taking cheese to eat on trips. You don't need a shop at the train station or airport to make this happen. Buy some cheese ahead of time, and then watch the countryside go by while you munch on your favorite cheese.

Some activities that lend themselves to cheese snacking include:

• Boating: Going on a long cruise? Pack a wheel of rich and nutty Gouda. The sailors of early days certainly did this. Why don't you? It will keep beautifully and provide a rustic, wholesome part of your daily meals.

• Bicycling: Cheese is the perfect power food to energize your next bike trip. Pack a hard cheese (see the list that follows) that doesn't need refrigeration to enjoy on a break with fresh, cool water, and a piece of fruit.

• Hiking: Crumbled Parmigiano-Reggiano mixed with cranberries and almonds makes the perfect trail mix.

• Skiing: The Swiss have known for hundreds of years that active winter sports need a boost from cheese. Take a couple of ounces of Gruyere the next time you hit the slopes. It's the perfect pick-me-up when you're feeling tired and cold.

Now you're ready to head out in search of new cheese. But you know it's going to be a long journey, and perhaps several hours or days before you reach your first destination. You'd better take a little cheese along, just in case.

Top 10 Road-Tested Cheeses

Here's a top 10 list of cheeses that can handle all sorts of things. They need little or no refrigeration (as long as it's not too hot and you keep them out of the sun), they are fantastically delicious, and they'll give you important vitamins, calcium, and energy to keep you in top shape for the road.

1. Grana Padano

2. Parmigiano-Reggiano

3. Piave

4. San Joaquin Gold

5. Mimolette

6. Ewephoria

7. Prima Donna

8. Old Amsterdam

9. Beemster X.O.

10. Saenkaenter

How to Keep Your Cheese Happy

Invest in a couple of collapsible, soft-sided, insulated coolers and several cold packs you can keep in your freezer. Wrap the cold packs in cheese paper or butcher paper, then with some plastic wrap. This will keep the cheese from getting freezer burn. Then arrange the cheese in the cooler with an icepack or two, and you'll have no cheese worries for the day.

Sealed plastic containers make great cheese-traveling partners. They contain aromas while allowing cheese to breathe. Dan Strongin, of Edible Solutions says to look for containers with ribbed bottoms, then place a paper towel underneath the cheese and seal. The paper towel helps create humidity, which keeps the moisture in. Tupperware makes one of the best bottom-ribbed, sealed containers for cheese.