What if
I am a vegetarian or have special dietary wants
and/or needs?
Will I go
hungry?
This is something you had better ask on the boards
about. If you are creative, generally no problem. But,
some countries, particularly in Africa and in Central
and South America are big meat eaters. In the Buddhist
countries of Asia it is much easier to find vegetarian
fare.
Veggie Markets
One
common characteristic of the second or third world is
the presence of a daily market. Vegetarians will find
these very useful as this is where you can find your
daily supplies. It is generally not difficult to find
soy or tofu or other things to provide the daily protein
that you will want/need.
Health Issues
Know that many countries still fertilize their crops
with "night soil" - the polite term for human waste.
Cleaning your vegetables well will usually require the
use of a disinfectant. But, such disinfectants are
often easily found - you will need to ask. Know also
that hepatitis A, B, and C are very common in many parts
of the world.
Asia
Personally, I'd head to Asia. It is not difficult to
ask for very common meat dishes to be made with only
vegetables and I often do if I am not sure of the
quality or source of meat that might be involved. Most
restaurants here in Thailand, for example, have no
problems with such requests.
Strict Vegetarians
Vegans will certainly have more difficulty than ovo-lacto
vegetarians. Milk and eggs are easily found almost
everywhere.
Special Dietary Needs
For
religious diets or diets designed for health problems -
best to ask on the discussion boards.
