overseas members

Posted January 14, 2003 · January 14, 2003

Sydney, Australia checking in ...

Lee-Gwen

Posted January 14, 2003 · January 14, 2003

*laugh* It is a bit. We are from Tassie originally but this is where the

work is. I am not really even playing with vegetarianism at the moment -

although I try to keep a large percentage of our meals vego - and we don't

eat out much.

Lee-Gwen

Posted January 15, 2003 · January 15, 2003

Okay, but do we have any members here from outside Canada and the USA? I

really believe so. My dh and I spent some 25 years (until the second

half of 1999) in Sydney, Australia.

Hi Pat,

In a word 'yes'

I'm writing this from Harlem in Holland so I can vouch for at least one member

outside USA/Canada.

I was born in Melbourne (capital city of Victoria in Australia) and lived there

for the first 28 years of my life until 1974 when we shifted to Adelaide

(capital of South Australia). I know that having lived in Sydney the geography

lesson is hardly necessary for you but hey!!!!! My first husband died and in

1998 I married a Dutch guy who used to live in Australia (he spent 32 years

there) but had returned to Holland to live in 1990. We refer to ourselves as

" Duzzies " - I think it sounds so much better that " Autch " don't you?

I agree with you that vegetarianism is very well tolerated in Australia

(especially in the larger cities) despite it being the world BBQ capital!!!!!

In Australia it is so easy to find vegetarian products in all the supermarkets

and no self-respecting restaurant would offer the ubiquitous omelette as its

'vegetarian suggestion'. It is a bit harder for me to comment objectively on

vegetarianism in Holland as I have a definite advantage over most other

vegetarians. My husband is a vegetarian because of his spiritual beliefs and

the huge majority of our friends here belong to the same organisation. Because

most of our social events are shared with other vegetarians it is second nature

for us. We seldom have to worry about explaining our dietary requirements to

hosts so I live in a virtual cocoon from that point of view.

Our non-veggie friends here know us very well and always look after us

brillaintly without making an issue of it or talking about it. That's TRUE

friendship. There are quite a few vegetarian restaurants in the larger cities

here (especially Amsterdam)and a few very good ranges of vegetarian 'meat

replacement' products in the supermarkets. The fact that the range of these

products is expanding indicates that there must be a willing market -

supermarkets aren't run as charities and will only stock what people will buy!

One thing that does seem to be missing here (as opposed to UK) is the large

range of ready-made vegetarian meals. You can buy vegetarian pizzas in the

freezer section of most supermarkets but, apart from the previously mentioned

meat replacement burgers etc, there isn't much variety. This is something which

surprises me as it appears to me that the Dutch do less home cooking 'from

scratch' than I am used to. There are plenty of non-vegetarian ready meals

available but I haven't seen things like vegetarian lasagne etc widely available

here.

When I lived in Australia I was sometimes wary of accepting invitations to

dinner from non-vegetarians, especially if I didn't know them very well.

Firstly, they were usually at a loss about what to cook and whether they should

serve separate dishes for us. I think sometimes that meat eaters feel daunted

by the prospect of preparing and serving something which is attractive,

nourishing and acceptable to other guests if the meal doesn't contain some form

of flesh. I sometimes felt that being vegetarian made me a 'problem guest' from

the point of view of the worried host and I hate putting people to a lot of

trouble. The second point which is sometimes a bit awkward is that, at a

'mixed' table of vegetarians and meat eaters, the conversation can so easily

turn to vegetarianism. I don't think that discussing the reasons for our

dietary choices makes particularly stimulating dinner discussion - similarly the

supposed 'deficiencies' in a vegetarian diet, the 'monotony' of the diet, the

practical 'difficulties' and so on tend to be rather tedious as topics for a

dinner conversation. I have noticed that, when dining in 'mixed' company, the

conversation often heads down this road. Needless to say, in my little 'veggie

world' here we talk about other topics as vegetarianism is as natural to us as

taking a shower each day and we certainly don't discuss that at the table!!!!

By the way, it's great to hear from another Aussie - even if only Aussie by

'adoption'. I'd love to hear (perhaps directly as it isn't really about

vegetarianism)what you feel having made 'the big move' back to the northern

hemisphere and what you miss most about Oz - for me it's the open spaces

(Holland has a population density of nearly 400 sq/km compared with

approximately 2 sq/km in Australia) and the smell of the gum trees. I have been

told that I am the only Australian most people have met here who doesn't

complain about the Dutch weather. I am definitely NOT, NOT, NOT a summer person

and summers with many successive days with high humidity and a temperature of

over 40Â° C are NOT, NOT, NOT for me!!!

Cheers for now,

Regards from Marie

magnificat

Posted January 15, 2003 · January 15, 2003

Hi again Marie

I remembered you, I promise ;=) How could I not after all that chat on tempeh

and your great recipes!

Well okay, you Duzzies have it good, I agree! That's wonderful ;=) It's always

good to have a supportive community - a community supportive to one's chosen

lifestyle is what I mean. I am glad things have worked out for you over there -

it's not easy moving countries, and certainly not, the experts tell us, past the

age of 12 - something I barely recall! ;=) Shall be happy to discuss this off

list if you like ;=) comparing notes sounds like fun!

best,

Pat - in canada

Marie Rieuwers wrote:

> Okay, but do we have any members here from outside Canada and the USA? I

> really believe so. My dh and I spent some 25 years (until the second

> half of 1999) in Sydney, Australia.

>

> Hi Pat,

>

> In a word 'yes'

>

> I'm writing this from Harlem in Holland so I can vouch for at least one member

outside USA/Canada.

>

> I was born in Melbourne (capital city of Victoria in Australia) and lived

there for the first 28 years of my life until 1974 when we shifted to Adelaide

(capital of South Australia). I know that having lived in Sydney the geography

lesson is hardly necessary for you but hey!!!!! My first husband died and in

1998 I married a Dutch guy who used to live in Australia (he spent 32 years

there) but had returned to Holland to live in 1990. We refer to ourselves as

" Duzzies " - I think it sounds so much better that " Autch " don't you?

>

> I agree with you that vegetarianism is very well tolerated in Australia