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Login Here Signup Here Signup using FacebookI know most members are American or British, but I'm sure many of you will have traveled - I was wondering -
Which countries have you been to/do you think are the most vegan and/or raw friendly?
Australia's not so bad, there's a lot of fresh produce available almost country wide, a lot of health food stores and cafes too which makes things easier. Our traditional cuisine is such a mix of other countries I can't really say whether it lend well to raw, but the variety, particularly of asian styles helps with finding vegan options
I lived in Belgium briefly (when i was an omnivore) and I have to say I would've STRUGGLED to be either raw or vegan. French/Dutch cuisine is so dairy/meat- heavy and fresh produce is expensive and nor as variable.
Comments
i have to agree, that europe isn't very vegan-friendly. i was 100% vegan for two years, but had to allow myself to eat dairy when travelling. during that time, i went on several holidays/long weekends to central and eastern europe (germany, latvia, hungary, croatia, serbia, czech, sweden etc.) and would've only eaten bowls of lettuce if i hadn't relaxed my rules and allowed cheese. even then, i lived on greek or serbian salads, pizza, bread and cheese, and pasta. we used to go to supermarkets to get food for breakfast or lunch-time picnics and even then, in some countries (serbia, albania, montenegro and macedonia especially!) fresh fruit and veg were scarce.
having said that, i think it's easier to be vegan where you live, wherever it may be, than to be a vegan traveller there. i live in the uk and i don't find it tough at all, but i would find it tougher (at least to get some variety) if i had to rely on eating out all the time. living here, i have access to supermarkets, farmers markets and organic fruit and veg box schemes. travellers without kitchens would have limited choices in most pubs/restaurants. london has several vegan-friendly restaurants, but some (Saf, The Gate) can be quite pricey for everyday fare.
This is going to be a huge problem for me when I go to France and Spain in February and then Germany next October. eeeek. In February, AP French and Spanish kids are going on a tour, and I have no idea what I'm going to eat. Plus all the meals are included in the price, so I have to spend extra money on my food. :(
When doing some research for a French article, I found one about "v
In France/Germany/Spain you should be okay, their supermarkets stock fresh fruit and vega and plenty of nuts etc, and at least in france and germany they have health food sections and alternative/specialist vegan products.
If it's a school trip you should talk to them about taking the cost of food out of your price - I do it for university fieldtrips where the food is catered, often it's not much (because for them its a bulk cost not individual) but it helps a little. You have a nutritionist - you could get them to write a letter saying its necessary for your health if they give you any grief, vegan at least, if not raw.
bluegreenherbivore - I'm planning to travel the eastern block (and South America and Africa) soon and I highly doubt I'll be able to stay vegan (I'm not so concerned about raw, it's just not possible), pretty sure I'll end up eating just potato if I try. I hate the idea that I'll have to eat dairy again, ugh.
In Africa I don't know how I'll even communicate it....South America might be easier, I have no idea.
South Korea is not the easiest place at ALL, nor is it the worst. I have found that living here for two years has taught me to be more specific about what exactly I want in my food. KOreans are very hospitable and take great care to make sure that you're content in their restaurant, and so they do as I ask quite happily. Generally speaking, Korean food is tofu or meat based, but if it's tofu based there's usually some sort of meat product thrown in (for good service, a very important part of the culture). You can easily just tell them (in Korean is easiest) to not put meat in, and they'll just add more tofu. Raw food is easily made at home with TONS of fresh produce available everywhere and at all times of the year. Travellers would find it more difficult since they wouldn't knwo where grocery stores are exactly...it seems that traveling is always tricky:)
Vegankid, what part of Spain? I lived in Spain for several years, and the good news is that produce is cheaper there than in the US. There are also more vegetarian restaurants in recent years.
The bad news is that waiters don't get tipped, so they don't particularly care if you have a great experience or not. Therefore, they're not the best with accomodating special requests (but it can't hurt to try).
If you have to eat in restaurants with your group, ask for gazpacho- it's all veggies and some olive oil. I ate tons of salads, but they tend to put tuna in them most of the time, so make sure you ask for ensalada sin at
I'm going to Madrid. :)