Ecuador & Peru: Part 1

            I was going to wait to discuss my vacation until I had finished editing my photographs but if I did that, I’d never end up talking about the trip.  It’s quite sad how many photographs I take on vacation.  I’m still editing photographs from vacations we took five years ago.  So in the interest of memory’s sake I shall at least discuss the first few impressions of Ecuador that I had as a vegan.  You know, incase anyone of my readers here wants to go there some day.

            First of all, here is Ecuador:

            That may seem odd to those reading this if you’re not from the U.S. but it really is necessary.  Geography and Americans are like the continental drift:  as time goes on, the distance between the two groups grows.
            …Anything?  Come on, that’s a decent geology joke.  Anyway.
            I was quite apprehensive about our trip to Ecuador.  I had visions of the streets roaming with pickpockets, volcanoes spewing down in every town we stopped (it seemed like every travel book said some active volcano was right next to wherever we were staying), and having terrible food poisoning throughout the trip.  I must also point out that this didn’t happen just because we were going to South America, per say.  I also got nervous before our trips to Ireland, Costa Rica, and Germany.  Any destination far from home where I either don’t speak the native language fluently or where I expect culture clashes to occur can fill me with dread.

            Then you add in the fact that I’m vegan and I have to somehow convey this message whenever we eat out?  Checking out the Happy Cow site didn’t do much to calm my fears much either.  Even 1 review of, “I tried to tell them I’m vegan but I could definitely taste dairy cheese,” can be enough to fill me with panic.  I had taken Spanish for 2 years in high school and off-and-on while in college but even with a small refresher using Rosetta Stone, I still couldn’t remember every fruit and vegetable out there.  What if I thought a word that was in a dish was a vegetable but was really some sort of animal product?  Yeah.  Fun.

How I knew everything would be ok. Bumblebee was at the Quito airport!

            So, with all of this apprehension, we arrived safely in Quito after a long day of flying.  After walking through the airport and taking a taxi that seemed to zip in-and-out of lanes with a speed barely slow enough for the human brain to process, we were dropped off at our hotel in the heart of Quito.  Being almost ten o’clock, we didn’t feel like eating anything despite having nearly nothing of substance to eat all day.  Instead, we decided to just eat a snack bar and some homemade bread we had stuffed in our backpacks.

Quito!  From the slopes of Pichincha

            Because we were there for only a limited amount of time, and because we wanted to see as much of the country as possible, we crammed as many activities into one day that we could.  After hiking around the slopes of Pichincha volcano (exhausting, by the way, if you’re not acclimated to the heights. We went from about 10,000 ft. to about 13,000 ft.) and parts of the old town, we went for a late dinner at El Maple, which was about a ten-minute walk from our hostel.

            It was a bit difficult to find, however, since Happy Cow’s directions were both a bit off and vague.  I walked up and down the block it was supposedly on and tried to get directions from people inside a fast food joint (awkward much?  Being a vegan and going into a chicken fast food place for directions.).  That didn’t pan out.  I finally found someone inside an internet café that had heard of it and we were on our way!

            It was a cool little vegetarian restaurant with brightly lit rooms on the inside.  We had one room all to ourselves for most of our meal but that’s probably because we were eating after eight and most people in Ecuador seem to have dinner either earlier or later.  Either way, I was looking to devour some food.  Besides a very small breakfast in our hotel that morning, we hadn’t had much since.  Eating one or two meals a day would be a regular thing for us on our vacation.

Breakfast at 1 of our hostels.

            With the apprehensions I spoke of earlier running through my mind, I nervously ordered dinner for myself.  Thankfully, the meal turned out to be quite good!  For an appetizer we had ordered a plate of diced potatoes covered in some sort of sauce (sorry, my memory is fading) and for a main meal we each had a plate with rice, seitan ‘steak’, lentils, a plantain, and a tiny salad.  I was worried about the raw salad because everything I read said to avoid raw salads but I figured that was mainly aimed at people eating in omnivore restaurants, so I ate it anyway.  Besides, when you’re ravenous, you will eat anything.

            Even though the meal was delicious, it definitely wasn’t an American-sized meal.  Needless to say, I was still a bit hungry even after the meal but it probably would’ve been fine had I had more food throughout the day.  Thankfully, worrying about the raw salad was pointless because I had no trouble that night or for most of the three-week vacation.  I’m not sure if that is due to veganism or because I was just lucky but I’ll take it.

Restaurante Manantial

            The next day was another day where we had one main meal but this time it was a late lunch at Restaurante Manantial, a vegetarian restaurant.  Again, the place was impossible to find because there was no sign outside to indicate where it was and the directions on Happy Cow were vague.  Again, we were hungry as hell when we showed up.  The portions for our meals were small but that was my fault.  I misunderstood the guy at the counter and asked to have the fixed menu for my wife and I.  The meal cost us about six dollars and while the food was good, it wasn’t enough for people who were starving.  And again, I ignored the warning about raw salad and ate some anyway.

            That night my stomach was just killing me.  I even passed fast food joints where I knew there wouldn’t be anything to eat with a look of longing.  We ended up ducking into a place called the Toronto Restaurant, a buffet place, because if I was going to resort to eating in an omnivore establishment, it was going to be in a Canadian-themed restaurant in Ecuador.  My wife didn’t partake but I devoured the hell out of a ton of potatoes, broccoli, rice – to name a few.  It was a pit stop made out of necessity rather than desire, really.  I was really nervous because it was our first stop into an omnivore restaurant and a buffet to boot.  My mind’s paranoia was screaming at me not to put anything on my plate but my stomach won out.  I’ll admit that I’m not really proud of this food stop.  Not because the food was bad but because after leaving, I felt like someone sneaking out of a one-night stand’s apartment with disheveled clothes at five in the morning.

            Overall, my initial fears around food were somewhat misplaced.  Up to this point I didn’t really have trouble communicating that we were vegan and didn’t eat certain foods.  I enjoyed Quito a lot more than I thought I would even though there were quite a lot of people.  The food for vegans and vegetarians is pretty decent and there are several vegetarian and vegan restaurants throughout the city.  If you ever make it there, you won’t go hungry.  Just make sure you don’t do it like I did and eat one or two meals a day (womp womp).

            One thing that made me a bit sad was the amount of street cart vendors that had piles of dead animals roasting on open grills.  The smells wafted through the air around these carts and there were quite a few people eating off of them.  It was a sad sight for a number of reasons, not least of which was the image of all the animals being raised for these food carts.  Plus, it just looked so incredibly unhealthy.  If even half of all the food carts that we saw in Ecuador and Peru started to operate in the States, every single one would probably be shut down for poor sanitation.

            South America also has a lot of stray dogs roaming the streets and every sad or sick or malnourished dog I saw, I could only think about our Collie.  I wish I could’ve taken care of each one of them.  I had to resist the urge to go pet every dog I saw.  My wife, on the other hand, picked and chose which dogs she would or wouldn’t pet, leaving me exasperated as I tried to urge her to back away.  I secretly was glad she ignored me to show the dogs a small sense of compassion.

            Other than that, however, it was a positive experience in Quito.  I would definitely go back.  I think this is as good a place as any to end things for part 1.  Perhaps I will pick it back up at some point in the future.  Until then, keep calm and vegan on!

If you want to learn more about El Maple, you can go HERE.  You can find them on a number of social media sites including Twitter at: @elmaple  (they have yet to tweet anything, however.)
If you want to learn more about Restaurante Manantial, you can go HERE.

The map of Ecuador was found using a Google search.

“You’ll Never Get Sick. You Will Never Grow Old. And You Will Never Die.” – Cocoon (1985)

            I’m sorry for the extended delay in posts.  Both my wife and I have had new work schedules and getting on a regular home/work schedule has taken some time.  Onto the posting!

            Ever since I went vegan, I have fallen into a belief that I should be superhuman healthy.  After all, I partly went vegan to get into, and stay in, optimal health.  I thought that all that really required was to eat right and – BAM! – I’d be fine.  It might not come as a surprise that I’ve always been worried that if I catch even a small cold, it would reflect poorly upon veganism as a healthy lifestyle.  I spent so much time discussing the healthy side effects that I have had and that my wife has had going vegan with people, that I thought people would call me a hypocrite even if I sneezed.  Whenever I would go into work with a head cold, I imagined somebody saying something like, “Uh oh!  The vegan is sick!  So much for the invincibility of you vegans!  Eat pigs, everyone!”  Then I would either slink into a corner or cough all over them.  Either way, it was a poor situation to find oneself.

            I thought all of this even though I can string sentences together and form complex thought.  I want to be the shining example of peak human health to give veganism a good name so it can’t be helped.  I think this without realizing changing and improving your health has multiple facets.  I do exercise but I’m still as skinny as a stick.  If somebody gives me anything heavier than a brick to carry, I’m sore the next morning.  (That’s hyperbole, by the way.  I’m still worried my humor doesn’t translate.)  I just half-expect a change in eating habits is enough to get me to peak performance, as if I could fall asleep like Tobey Maguire and wake up with Spider-Man powers.

            Tobey Maguire, by the way, is a vegan.  I didn’t even mean to use him as an example because of that fact either.  I just love all things Spider-Man.

            Not only that but I still have seasonal allergies and acne – as I’ve stated previously.  Veganism hasn’t been able to eradicate those two things completely but that doesn’t discredit veganism.  So why should I worry about getting a cold when veganism can’t be a cure-all for everything else about me?

            I recently listened to a podcast by the great Colleen Patrick-Goudreau where she was discussing healthy vegans in response to an e-mail somebody had sent her.  The e-mail was from somebody who felt like she shouldn’t tell people she’s vegan just because she is over-weight.  Colleen quite logically stated that there is no one example of a healthy vegan.  One shouldn’t be discouraged to proclaim him or herself a vegan if he or she happens to be overweight.  Your body image does not reflect on veganism.  Just as getting sick doesn’t reflect on the virtues of veganism.

            I do not know why it took hearing that coming from somebody else for it to finally click but it did.  And again I’m indebted to CPG’s podcast.

Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. You'd know this if you had clicked on her link already. D'uh.

            However, that doesn’t mean that the lesson always sticks.

            Recently, I fainted for no (at the time) apparent reason.  This was the day that my wife and I had gone to The Chicago Diner for breakfast.  After we did our running around we collapsed for a nice evening nap (I told you our life/work schedules had changed).  Upon waking, I quickly got out of bed, took about two steps to my desk, and that’s it.  The next thing I know, I’m coming to on my bedroom floor with my wife and mom surrounding me.  My wife had been calling my name and since I had no idea what the hell was going on, I kept telling her I was fine.

            They told me that contrary to what I believed, I was not fine because I had fainted and hadn’t responded for several seconds.  I thought that was ludicrous because I’ve never fainted before and I had always imagined – thanks to Hollywood – that when one faints, they swoon a bit, mumble something silly, their eyes roll up, and then gracefully fall to the ground.  The only thing I could recall was turning the TV on and then “waking up” with everyone surrounding me.  What I had been was sweaty, weak, and nauseous.  The meal that my mom was making for everyone other than my wife and I was overpowering to my nose (everyone else said they could hardly smell it).  But to faint?  I had thought at the time that that was crazy.

            As the night wore on, I was equally intrigued by this fainting business and also worried.  My veganism had cured me of every illness and woe, right?  So what was wrong?  It had to be something bad because in the age of Web, M.D., a hangnail means cancer.

            With much reluctance, I scheduled my first doctor’s appointment in several years at the insistence of everyone in my family.  I had never had a physical before so I figured now would be as good of a time to get one as any.  However, since it had been ages since I had visited my doctor, I had to get a preliminary appointment first before I could get a physical.  Joy!  Two doctor’s visits for the price of one!

            I went in on the following Monday, retold what had happened to the nurse and the doctor, and then discussed possible outcomes.  Now, doctor visits for most vegans is a whole new blog entry, but for now let me just say I was a bit worried the topic of veganism and its viability as a healthy lifestyle would rear its head.  I was prepared for a discussion but when I mentioned it, my doctor didn’t even flinch.  He simply nodded and gave a, “Mmhmm.”  I was quite surprised but I should’ve known it wouldn’t be a big deal because my doctor had always been cool and seemed more evolved than the average doctor.  Or perhaps I’m full of shit.

My doctor, Dr. Doogie Howser.

            He did state that I probably just fainted from getting out of bed too quickly, and since I hadn’t had much water to drink that day, I was also dehydrated.  It was a perfect storm.  That eased my mind a lot.  He did want to draw some blood to make sure there wasn’t anything wrong.  I also had never had my blood drawn, as far as I knew, so this was just turning out to be all kinds of fun!  Since I also hadn’t had much water that day, drawing blood was a big process.  So what’s the real takeaway from every step of this situation?  DRINK WATER!

            I waited until my results came in and I am happy to report that I am the most amazing human being ever to walk the earth.  Okay, not quite.  I am, however, healthy.  So I have that going for me, which is nice.  No anemia, no thyroid issues, no liver or kidney problems, and no nutritional issue.  My glucose level was within normal range, which that alone is a miracle since I’ve grown up mainlining sugar into my bloodstream.  Take THAT Type-2 diabetes!

            I think the lesson is that there is no vegan completely immune to every illness and it is a lesson that I’ll have to try harder to remember.  I can still be a healthy vegan and have bad things happen.  Shit indeed does happen.  I can’t let veganism alone be my shield against bad things.  Oh, right, and drinking water also helps (repetition helps reinforce the takeaways).

            How about you all?  Any interesting doctor stories or health-related issues you’ve had to deal with as a vegan/vegetarian?  I want to see how other doctors have treated vegans.

            Until next time, keep calm and vegan on!

You can find Colleen Patrick-Goudreau on a number of social media sites including Facebook and Twitter.  DEFINITELY check out her podcast!  You can find her on Twitter at @JoyfulVegan.

The cartoon of the doctor was found using Google's image search.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes, Turn And Face The Strange, Changes!

            My apologies to David Bowie because I am singing that out loud and horribly off-key.  But most importantly, my apologies to you all for the weeklong hiatus.  I’ve been a tad busy but I’m back!  I must admit that I’m impressed with even the modicum of traffic I’ve received so far.  Thanks for stopping by!

            I thought the subject title would fit well with this entry.  You see, many vegans become vegans in hopes that a change in diet would cure them of what ails them.  There are plenty of well-intentioned vegans who see friends or family suffering from one health issue or another and they tell them that becoming vegan is the end-all, be-all cure.  Now, don’t get me wrong, the benefits of dropping animals from your diet are vast and well known (it’s kind of why I went vegetarian in the first place).

Just look at vegans such as KrisCarr who was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in 2003.  She changed her diet and lifestyle and, thankfully, she’s still kicking ass and taking names (I’m sure I’ll talk more about her story in future entries, but please feel free to click on her link now!  She’s awesome and my entry can wait).  However, I know people try to use the miracle drug that is veganism as the sales pitch to ‘convert’ omnivores into becoming herbivores without applying conditions to those promises.  Many people make it seem like everyone’s health ailments will disappear from giant health issues down to the littlest of ailments.

            “If you stop eating meat, your glaucoma will be cured!”

            “If you stop eating meat, those bunions will disappear!”

            “If you stop eating meat, you’ll never sneeze AGAIN!”

            “If you stop eating meat, you will have thicker hair and grow muscles and be the envy of everyone who isn’t you!”

            Um.  Just to clarify, the first two aren’t problems I have to deal with.  Totally hypothetical, people!  I promise.  I have the pictures to prove it!  Anyway…

            Just like everything, however, whatever changes may or may not take place starts with you.  Are you a junk food vegan consuming crackers, chips, cookies, and an insane amount of hummus, guacamole, and frozen vegetables; meanwhile, making sure the only exercise you receive is the walk to the fridge?  Or are you a healthy vegan who eats “all the colors of the rainbow” (as is the popular phrase everyone should be living by) and exercises outside of the home 3-5 times a week?  If you think you’re going to drop a hundred pounds by being the former vegan rather than the latter vegan, you’re sadly mistaken.

            Even before I went vegetarian, as I’ve mentioned in my first entry, I was noticing the changes that my wife was going through by first transitioning to vegetarianism and then veganism.  It was impressive and started to happen in only a few months.  Not only that, she would tell me stories about others whose lives had changed thanks to a vegan diet (like Carr and many other bloggers, authors, and speakers).  She would tell me of health benefits of going vegan from people such as Dr. Michael Greger (a person who also deserves more focus in later entries) and Ginny Kisch Messina (a.k.a., the Vegan R.D.).  Each new medical revelation that veganism presented over conventional medicine made it hard not to think that I wouldn’t become some sort of Superman by going vegan.  This wasn’t the fault of my wife, who was just simply presenting information – I mean, I wasn’t suffering from anything so she had no real cause to persuade me and she had no intention of converting me in the first place.  As any normal human, I let my imagination run away with me and thought, “Man, veganism is amazing!  Why am I not getting in on this?”

            At the very least, I was hoping that my skin would clear up.  I mean, it kind of sucked being an adult with acne.  So, really, there wasn’t much work to be done to get to where I wanted to be.  I was fortunate in that respect.  However, as the months rolled into the years, I must report that I still have acne, but the good news is that it’s not as bad as it was when I was consuming animal products.  Again, am I a junk food vegan or a healthy vegan?  A bit of both it would seem.  I’m sure if I cut out all the crap I eat or drink I would notice a bigger change in my skin but…

            Even though I didn’t notice a huge change in my acne, I did notice a change in less superficial ways.  I felt better whenever I ate food.  I used to have a weak stomach that couldn’t handle anything.  It was terrible.  When I went vegan, and not including the times when I just overstuffed myself on food, I never once had an issue due to my stomach.  The foods that once caused me problems after eating them no longer did so.  Not only that, but it sure is nice to eat a Thanksgiving meal and not feel like death afterwards.  Not eating heavy foods that are just going to rot in your stomach does have its perks.

            I also noticed that I generally slept better and woke up easier in the mornings.  I’m not saying I suddenly became a morning person, but I wouldn’t be as groggy as I had been before going vegan.  My stamina is better, too.  I’m not as lethargic as I once was.  Am I still lazy?  If you ask my wife, she may tell you that I am.  She’s right, too, but at least it’s not as bad as it once was.  My disposition wasn’t as bad, in general, either.  Again, I’m not saying I suddenly became Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky but I wasn’t going to rip somebody’s head off at the slightest thing, either.  I’m not sure if veganism is the reason for that last anecdote but I wouldn’t doubt it.

            Just for lessening my acne and curing me of my irritable stomach, going vegan was totally worth it.  While I make no promises about what cures veganism may or may not hold for you if you still haven’t gone vegan, it’d be hard to imagine nothing changing at all.  At the least, you won’t be contributing to the abuse, torture, and murder of innocent animals, which should make your conscience feel a ton better.  That I can promise.  The rest just depends on what you want to put into the experience and get out of the experience.  Just remember to set reasonable expectations!  It'll avoid disappointment.

            I think I’ve rambled enough.  What about you?  Are you one of those vegans who went vegan for health issues you were suffering from?  Did going vegan help or are you still suffering from whatever it is you are dealing with?  What did you do or eat to help with your health issues when you went vegan/vegetarian?

            Any deeper questions on the changes I went through that I didn’t cover?  If it’s something I forgot, perhaps I’ll discuss it in another entry at some point.  So don’t hesitate to ask!  It might help generate discussion.

            Until next time, keep calm and vegan on!

You can follow Ginny Kisch Messina on Twitter at @TheVeganRD
You can follow Dr. Michael Greger on Twitter at @nutrition_facts
You can follow Kris Carr on Twitter at @Kris_Carr

NOTE:  The meme was found using Google.