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Boot Camp and CrossFit at Primal Energy in Portland
I recently finished a month of unlimited CrossFit and boot camps at Primal Energy in SE Portland. A daily deal site convinced me to check it out. This was my first experience with CrossFit, a brand I’ve seen a lot in the last year or two. I’d heard the workouts were hard, and had seen some very fit adherents, so I was curious about what I was getting into. But a coupon is a coupon, and I wasn’t going to let nerves get in the way of redeeming mine!
Much of my cardio time is spent in interval training – that is, push hard for a minute or three, dial it back, push hard again, then go easier — or moderate steady state exercise, like Zumba or step aerobics, over the course of 30-60 minutes. Laurie Fish, owner of Primal Energy, had different ideas. When I arrived in her well-equipped little studio on SE Powell and 13th, she let me know we were going for a perceived exertion rate of 10 out of 10. For the whole time. Uh oh.
Laurie Fish will give you an intense workout at Primal Energy
Most of her workouts start with a run around the block. Then comes the suffering. Her workouts are blessedly short, but intense in a way I wasn’t used to. For me, they involved intervals, all right – intervals of stopping to pant and wonder if I could go on, while Laurie cried, “Come on, Teresa! Keep going! A few more!”
Students can choose between boot camp and CrossFit classes. Exercises are simpler in boot camp, and you get right to it. CrossFit exercises involve a little more skill and coaching. I mostly went to boot camp, mainly because those classes fit my schedule better.
At the beginning of each class, Laurie writes the workout du jour on a board, so you know what’s coming. It might be seven different exercises, each done 50 times, or only three, each done for three minutes, with the sequence executed three times. Typical exercises include jumping pull ups, pushups (touching your chest all the way to the ground), box jumps, burpees and squats (touching your butt all the way to a ball).
The classes I went to were very small, ranging from two to five people. Laurie encouraged everybody. While she definitely wasn’t letting us slack, she was still kind and compassionate. If she thought we were struggling too much, she’d modify the exercise so we could feel successful. She also emphasized friendliness and a team attitude.
To understand a little more about what we were doing, I searched the articles database on the IDEA Fitness Association site. This fitness industry leader provides lots of free info to the masses. According to an article by Ryan Halvorson and Bill Sonnemaker, CrossFit falls into an approach called “metabolic conditioning.” It’s based on the idea that a high-intensity workout burns significantly more calories both during and after exercising than a moderate intensity workout. The article said that friendly rivalries which develop during class can also make people work harder than they would alone. At Primal Energy, Laurie had us write our times on the board when we finished a Crossfit workout.
The intensity level can pose dangers. According to Halvorson and Sonnemaker, training too hard can lead to musculoskeletal damage and even rhabdomyolysis, a frightening condition where muscle fibers break down and get into the bloodstream. I know there were times at Primal Energy where I worried I’d injure myself, and wondered if I was too old for such a high intensity workout. The bottom line, as far as the IDEA writers were concerned, is pushing yourself while remaining aware of your limits. “In a safe environment,” they concluded, “metabolic conditioning can offer a time-efficient method for helping people fast-track fat loss goals.”
My own conclusions were that while at times the workouts seemed almost impossible to complete, I (mostly) got through them, and felt good afterwards. My recovery was fast and I felt perfectly fine when I left. Of course, the delayed onset muscle soreness often caught up with me the next day, but in a way that let me know I worked my muscles hard, not injured them. However, it would be easy to go too far and strain a muscle in class. I’m not convinced that the high-intensity mode is a good place for deconditioned people to start, or those who are recovering from injuries. Although I’m sure working one-on-one with Laurie as a personal trainer would be quite valuable.
I made it through my month at Primal Energy without anything worse than sore muscles, and enjoyed my time with Laurie and the other students. If you’re in Portland and want to experience the CrossFit workout in an environment where you’ll get plenty of personal attention, Primal Energy is a good place to do it.
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Interview with Professor Mahinda Palihawadana
As part of my research for Vegetarian Asia Travel Guide, I came across the eloquent writings of Mahinda Palihawadana of Sri Lanka. I especially enjoyed his articles on connections between Buddhism and vegetarianism. When I got up the nerve to contact Professor Palihawadana and request an e-interview, he could not have been more generous in sharing his information. He also provided me with Sinhalese translations, for which I am very grateful.
Professor Palihawadana taught religious studies in Sri Lankan universities and as a visiting professor in several American universities, including Harvard. He started out as a Sanskrit lecturer in 1960 and continued educating students for more than three decades. From 1997-2003, Professor Palihawadana was president of the Sri Lanka Vegetarian Society.
Teresa: What do you think the general attitude is toward vegetarianism in Sri Lanka?
Professor Palihawadana: It’s rather mixed. Buddhists show some respect for vegetarians, especially for vegetarian monks. Hindus definitely have more respect for vegetarianism. In fact the large majority of Sri Lankan vegetarians are Hindus. Among Christians and Muslims, who represent the other two religions practiced in the country, the attitude is generally unfavourable, with notable exceptions of course. It is very exceptional to find Muslim vegetarians.
Teresa: Do you think the number of vegetarians in Sri Lankais increasing, decreasing or staying the same?
Professor Palihawadana: It is increasing. One can sense it in many ways- the media – both print and electronic, the hotels and restaurants, the religious discourse among Buddhists, the increasing number of vegetarian celebrities – all of this reflects a growing interest in, and adherence of, vegetarianism. At the same time, however, consumption of meat among non-vegetarians has also definitely increased. This is because of greater adoption of western food habits. Opening of McDonald and KFC outlets contributes to this trend significantly.
Teresa: Are Hindus or Buddhists more likely to be vegetarian in Sri Lanka?
Professor Palihawadana: Hindus, as said above. That has been traditionally the case. But there are also a lot of Buddhist vegetarians.
Teresa: What do you think are the main reasons most Sri Lankan vegetarians choose to forego meat?
Professor Palihawadana: Ethical and health, no doubt about that. The latter reason is a modern development.
Teresa: The Sri Lanka Vegetarian Society webpage looks like it’s been inactive for a while. Is this group still together?
Professor Palihawadana: It is, but it’s been very low-key lately. They print some pamphlets and hold some meetings , not much else at the present time. But there is another organization, a Sri Lanka Non-violence Association, which is very active. It has a noticeable presence on TV, conducts propaganda meetings in schools and temples, has brought out some CDs and is planning to launch its website shortly.
Teresa: How are animals treated in Sri Lanka? Are they kept as pets? Loved or abused? Are there many strays?
Professor Palihawadana: Dogs and cats are the favorite pets in SL households. Strays are, sadly, not getting proper treatment. But a number of animal protection organizations have been doing wonderfully good work and have succeeded in creating a better environment for stray dogs.
Teresa: In your life, have you had any special bonds with particular animals?
Professor Palihawadana: There have always been cats and dogs in our home and in my parents’ home, and we have a garden in which many species of birds, butterflies, small land animals and even a few monkeys are always present. But I cannot say that I have had a “special bond” with any one animal or several animals.
Teresa: What made you decide to devote so much of your life to promoting vegetarianism?
Professor Palihawadana: I was a vegetarian activist only for about six or seven years, though I have been promoting vegetarianism in a small and unobtrusive way for much longer. I abhor the sight of living beings being killed, whatever the reason. One of my teachers, Dr. E. W. Adikaram, was a prominent promoter of vegetarianism in Sri Lanka during his time. I believe his example also influenced me to do some of the things that I have done in my life.
Teresa: Are attitudes toward animal sacrifices changing in Sri Lanka?
Professor Palihawadana: Animal sacrifices are conducted in a few Hindu temples and in Muslim households as an annual observance during a certain period of the year. The rest of the population does not like this and there is some vocal protest. However, as you know, when things are done in the name of religion, it is always difficult to intervene.
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Desserts of Macau
[This is an excerpt from my book Vegetarian Asia Travel Guide, which should be available within a month.]
When looking through a book of Macanese recipes, the only vegetarian ones I found were desserts. So if you have a sweet tooth and you eat eggs, you can at least sample some traditional treats. Ginger milk is made of milk and ginger juice and eaten with a spoon. Arroz doce is rice pudding. Serradura combines whipped cream, condensed milk and crushed cookies. You can also buy homemade ice cream in tropical flavors.
- mango-sago-pomelo pudding served at Treasure Palace in City of Dreams
Pumpkin compote and bread pudding don’t need much explanation. Ovos em neve, or snowy eggs, combines condensed milk, fresh milk, wheat flour, chocolate powder and eggs. Saransuravel is a cake made with shredded coconut and dry roasted bean powder. Batatada is a baked mixture of potatoes, butter, sugar, flour, eggs, coconut and condensed milk. Coconut cha cha gets its flavor from coconut, dark brown sugar, green beans, tapioca and yam. Bagi is sweet glutinous rice with coconut. I also put away a couple of excellent chocolate mousses.
Portuguese egg tarts from Lord Stow's Bakery
If you’ve been eating nothing but plain rice while traveling through Asia, perhaps some fatias da china is just the thing to add richness to your diet. The recipe calls for two ingredients only: 20 egg yolks and one pound of sugar.
Firma U Tac Hong tofu shop in Macau
One traditional Chinese treat is tofu fa, or smooth tofu. I visited Firma U Tac Hong, also called Lee Hong Kee, which is known as Macau’s most famous tofu dessert shop. While it looked like a small, simple storefront business, my host assured me that visitors from all over the tofu-eating world come to sample the tofu fa, which is made on the premises. Served in a Styrofoam container, you get a generous serving of tofu topped with evaporated milk. You add your own sugary syrup from a condiment container at the table and stir it all up. It tastes about how you might think a block of soft tofu mixed with sugar syrup would taste. If you’re new to tofu fa, start with the smallest size and see if you like it.
A local enjoys his tofu fa at Firma U Tac Hong tofu shop
Packaged almond and sesame cookies are good bets, and many even feature a “suitable for vegetarians” label. Note that some almond cookies contain milk and some don’t. If this is a concern, read the labels carefully. The almond cookies were probably my favorite Macanese cuisine. People make them on the streets and will usually offer you a warm, freshly-baked sample.
Warm, delicious almond cookies, a Macau specialty
More sweets await you at Macau’s many bakeries. But be careful. It was on my first trip to Macau that my traveling companion bit into a powdered sugar covered almond croissant only to find it concealed a hot dog. Break your pastry in half to avoid surprise fillings.
Fortunately, the hot dogs are visible in these pastries. Sometimes they're hidden inside.
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Indian Vegetarian Food in Macau
Last week I got to spend a few days in Macau, and was lucky enough to meet Aruna Jha, the person I most wanted to interview for my upcoming edition of Vegetarian Asia Travel Guide. Aruna first moved from India to Macau in 1983, planning to spend three months teaching kathak dance to the citizens of Macau. However, plans change. Now, decades later, Aruna has built up an empire of Indian restaurants.
one of Aruna's delicious vegetarian restaurants in Macau
“I was the first one to start the curry in Macau,” she told me proudly. While few Indians live in Macau, tourism has risen dramatically since 2009, when the International Indian Film Academy had its big awards ceremony in the former Portuguese colony. Now thousands of Indians visit on package tours and Aruna feeds many of them. She caters to veg, non-veg, Jain and halal diets. The back wall of her third restaurant is covered with photos of Aruna with Indian and Macanese celebrities and officials.
Maybe one day I will make it onto Aruna's wall of fame!
If you’re a vegetarian traveling to Macau, I strongly encourage you to visit one of her three restaurants (or maybe four by the time you read this). I was only able to eat her food once while in Macau, but I could happily have eaten there every day. I managed to try quite a few dishes, including black dal in a tomato base, mattar paneer, two different types of spinach, homemade yogurt with salt and mango powder, papadam, roti and garlic naan. Goodness, when I write it all out, I realize I made a pig of myself! I also ate some samosa chaat, one of Aruna’s signature dishes, which is basically chopped samosas in a delicious yogurt sauce. Oh, and I drank a mango lassi, too.
Aruna’s warmth and hospitality made me feel right at home, even after having been up for about two days on my trip over. I ate lots of good vegetarian meals during my stay, but Aruna’s was my favorite vegetarian food in Macau.
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Cafe Deco: Vegetarian Food in the Hong Kong Airport
A couple of days ago I found myself in the crowded Hong Kong Airport, tired, hungry and with someHong Kong dollars to spend. After a careful examination of all the restaurants near my gate, I selected Café Deco as by far the most veg-friendly. And the most expensive. But the high cost of lunch also rented an hour or so of very pleasant space secluded from the bustling airport. In the food court, table space was at such a premium that some people were eating standing up. I was much too tired to want to do that.
- Cafe Deco has lots of vegetarian food to offer hungry travelers
I ordered the coconut-based Oriental vegetable curry ($168 HK), which included potatoes, green beans, broccoli, corn, carrots, tomato and some other mystery veggies. The saffron rice was moist and topped with a few cashews.
Oriental vegetable curry. Sorry, it was so good I ate most of it before I remembered to photograph it.
Other veg options are tomato and okra curry, two types of naan, deep-fried bean curd with hand-pulled noodles, vegetable samosas with tamarind chutney, tomato, basil and mozzarella bruschetta, and a salad with avocado, mozzarella, pine nuts and citrus-basil dressing. If you want Italian, they have two types of veggie pizza, two pastas and a veggie panini. They also offer sweet almond, butternut and basil soup. As I type that long list, I realize it’s quite impressive for vegetarian airport cuisine.
I didn’t get dessert, but in addition to typical Western selections they offer a cake made from mango, coconut and pandan. But I was determined to change some of my HK dollars back to American. So I refrained.
If you happen to be traveling with a chicken-eating Muslim, a halal Popeye’s is nearby.
Popeye's, now with halal chicken
Café Deco is on level 7 of the North Departures Concourse in the Passenger Terminal Building. It’s open from 6:30 until midnight daily.
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My First Acupuncture Session
Since I’m a newly minted personal trainer, I’ve been practicing on a few friends. Allyson, one of my friends from the gym, just passed her last exam to become a full-fledged acupuncturist. She suggested a trade: I train her and she’d stick pins in me. Okay, she didn’t put it that way exactly.
Since I’ve been teaching yoga for many years, people often assume I’m experienced in all sorts of alternative healing modalities. But I had never had an acupuncture session.
The basic premise of acupuncture is that you can gain physical and emotional balance by inserting needles at strategic points along the body’s energy channels. In Chinese medicine, these channels are called meridians. In yoga, we call them nadis. Since I’ve always been needle-averse, I had not explored acupuncture further than a vague understanding of its general point.
But I figured it was time to be a little more open-minded, so we set up the trade.
I didn’t know what to expect. Sure, needles are involved, but do they look just like sewing needles? Do they hurt? Would I have to take my clothes off? What if it didn’t do anything? Where, exactly, would I be stuck?
During my first session yesterday, Allyson took it easy on me. She agreed to give me veto power over needles in any places I thought were too weird. We discussed my health and psychological conditions and decided to go for an overall balancing with concentration on creativity and mental focus.
We descended to her basement and I lay down on a massage table. She had a table warmer, which was nice. I only had to take off my sweatshirt and socks, leaving me with pants and a tank top. Turned out the needles had red plastic tips on them like safety flags, which was a relief, because I’d heard of needles getting lost in people. Allyson said she was using the extra-gentle needles on me, which her friends in acupuncture school referred to as “butter coated.” Actually, they’re coated with silicone, which makes them slide in more easily.
- Just a few little needles
Still, I was apprehensive about the first poke. She started with a place near my knee, which she said was “very nourishing” for my digestion. I could definitely feel it go in, a very small sharpness, but not too bad. Next came one near my ankle, a few in my arm and one near my right wrist. That was the one that gave me the strongest reaction. When she slid it in, I felt an immediate sensation near my thumb. Allyson said that’s where that energy channel leads. It’s associated with the lungs, grief and the color white. My lungs seem fine, but there’s been some grief in the last six months, so maybe that’s why I felt that point so noticeably. The last few needles went in my scalp, which wasn’t as bad as it might sound. Then Allyson covered me with a sheet and let me cook.
There’s no particular way you’re supposed to feel, she told me. Some people relax so much they fall asleep. Others have emotions come up. I was chatty, but that’s nothing new. While the needles did their thing, Allyson told me a little about her trip to China, where she studied acupuncture in hospitals. Sounds like they use big needles there, and are about 1/100th as gentle as Allyson was with me.
You can see here it's quite a skinny needle, though "butter-coated" is an exaggeration
Allyson took the needles out after 25 minutes, which she said was a good length of time for a first session. More seasoned acupuncture enthusiasts might want them left in for a whole hour. Also, I had planned to go to Spinning to get my day’s cardio dose in, and it was about to start.
As I drove to the gym, my driving didn’t seem top notch. But again, like the chattiness, I don’t know if it’s fair to blame that on acupuncture.
The relaxation of my acupuncture session set in when I mounted my Spinning bike. I was decidedly demotivated. Why do people Spin, I wondered. Why don’t they take a nap or go lie on the gym’s heated massage bed? But I was there, so I persevered. Jocelyn, the teacher, encouraged us to ride faster! Don’t give up! Make every minute count! Her coaching rolled right off me. Then we got to the most intense part of the class, five minutes where we were supposed to pretend we were pedaling uphill in a race, and whenever we caught up to somebody we’d put on a spurt of energy and pass them. I closed my eyes to try to imagine this better. And that’s where the relaxation and creativity of the acupuncture session manifested itself. No way did I feel like I could pick off serious bike racers. But in my head, I conjured those whom I could pass. First, a turtle, then a snail. I picked up my pace, soon overtaking a fish out of water, an old man whose wheelchair had broken down, a snake with tire tracks across it, a Venus flytrap, and a stoner in a hammock smoking a joint. When I crested the imaginary hill, I felt like a champ.
I victoriously pass a snail on my Spin bike. photo by Mary Tapogna
A day later, I’m still not sure exactly what effects, if any, my first acupuncture experience had on me. If nothing obvious, at least I’m getting more educated about a practice I know little about. I look forward to trading a few more sessions with Allyson and seeing what happens next.
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Korean Vegetarian Advice from Dylan Coyle
Dylan Coyle moved to Korea to teach English, but fell in love with the country and is now attending university there. His participation in the Seoul Veggie Club helped him find lots of support for his vegan diet. Dylan is full of extremely helpful advice for vegetarians planning a visit to Korea. He took the time to answer all my Korea questions for the upcoming edition of Vegetarian Asia: A Travel Guide.
- Dylan Coyle, a vegan in Korea
Teresa: Where are you from?
Dylan: I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Teresa: How did you become a vegan?
Dylan: I became vegetarian when I was 12. It seemed like a spontaneous choice at the time but I was taking a media literacy class in middle school. We watched some videos about all the tactics advertisements used to persuade kids and it really gave me permission to make my own decisions. I was getting chubby from too much fast food, and didn’t really understand the logic between having pets but also eating animals, so vegetarianism fit into my life well. I gradually cut out eggs and dairy until I was 19 when I became officially vegan. I also became a latchkey kid around 12, so learning to cook vegetarian food for myself was fun and easy.
Teresa: What made you choose Korea as a place to teach?
Dylan: Food was one of the big reasons to come here. I was sitting in my car in California eating rice cake while trying to make my decision, and knew that I would love eating and cooking here every day. My plan was originally to go to London for grad school afterwards, but I fell in love with Korea and I’m studying international development at Yonsei University in Seoul now! So technically I’m not a teacher anymore, and I’m looking at working at an NGO, IGO, USAID, or UN project here.
Teresa: How do Koreans react to your veganism?
Dylan: I have had nothing but great support here. People have introduced me to their favorite veggie restaurants and dishes. When I was teaching, my institute was very sensitive to my diet and took the whole staff a few times to some really nice traditional style vegetarian dinners.
Teresa: Do you know many Korean vegans/vegetarians?
Dylan: Yes! There are so many Korean vegetarians. The Korean vegetarian group is called Hanulvut. Their events are bigger than the international ones, and they have speakers like famous doctors. The programming is all in Korean but I’ve gone anyway and made friends. I also met a few Korean vegetarians and vegans at Yonsei.
Teresa: What’s it like staying vegan in Korea?
Dylan: I say it’s a worthwhile compromise. I could have stayed in San Francisco where it was easy to be a perfect vegan, but I think it is worth taking the meat off of some dishes that were messed up from communication mistakes, or conceding that some of the flavoring in some dishes probably has seafood in it. It’s easier the longer I stay here, as I learn more strategies and language, and I only hope I can help others adapt and enjoy a more veggie life style here.
Teresa: Any advice for travelers?
Dylan: 1. Avoid Western style restaurants when asked where you want to eat. They are still a choice between French fries and expensive salads.
2. Side dishes are your friends. Korean meals come with 3 to 30 different vegetable dishes. They are refillable, so don’t feel bad about going crazy on them.
3. Timing is important. When the meat in the middle of the Korean meal is gone, then everyone leaves. I eat half the side dishes by the time half the meat is gone, and finish them when everyone else does. If you finish them early, they will be refilled.
4. Don’t be shy. If you’re with a huge group (like teacher orientation), then you can switch places as few times with others so they can eat the meat by your place and you can eat all their side dishes while talking to new people.
5. “Bap-man” means “just rice.” I’ve ordered this lots of places and then added my own fixings.
6. Kimbab! Kim is a type of seaweed and bap is cooked rice, so it’s the Korean equivalent to sushi. If you go to a place where they have all the ingredients out, you can point to the egg, fishcake, and ham, and make a big X with your arms, and then you can watch as they are made. (Yachae kimbab means vegetable kimbab, but always includes the egg, fishcake, and ham unless you ask for it without)
7. Halal food in Korean is harder to find than vegetarian food, but most cities have foreigner marts that specialize in it, and the area by the Mosque near Itaewon has tons of options. Supermarkets also have some Halal food.
8. Ssamjang is a culinary secret weapon. It’s garlic pepper paste, normally used as a condiment, but goes well on everything. I dip fruit in it, stir fry with it, mix it in my rice. It comes in a green tub.
9. Communication is hard even when people use the same language. Mistakes will happen, refunds are difficult to get, but being friendly will be remembered by everyone you are with.
10. Prepare for lots of questions. A lot of questions that are considered rude in other countries are standard in Korean. Age, martial status, religion, and why you’re vegan are asked without thought that you might be offended.
11. Make local friends. Join clubs and message boards for things you are interested in doing here.
12. You can rent a phone in the main airports. They have Korean-English dictionaries on them, and there are free translation services that you can call any time. The government tourism phone number is 1330 (02-1330 from a cell) and BBB volunteer translator service is 1588-5644. Smart phones are available too, and having a map and fast internet access helps no matter what you eat.
13. I could go on but this is a good start. Seoul Veggie Club on Facebook is a great place for anyone to ask more questions about vegetarian and vegan food concerns!
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Fundraiser at c.h. Physical Therapy
It’s a good feeling when two things you care about come together. So when I learned that physical therapist Colin Hoobler was doing a workshop on exercises for knee osteoarthritis – and donating the proceeds to the Humane Society – I signed up immediately.
Colin Hoobler: physical therapist, author, speaker, inventor
If you live in the Portland area, you might have read Colin’s helpful column in Wednesday’s Living section of the Oregonian. Colin is a busy fellow. He runs four offices of c.h. Physical Therapy, appears regularly on a TV show on channel 8, guest lectures around the country, writes books and basically works to convince the world that exercise therapy can improve many medical conditions. Oh, and he’s also an inventor. Check out his Balance Gym™, which helps people improve their balance.
I was excited to meet Colin and learn some tricks for dealing with knee problems. I’ve been teaching yoga for nine years now, but just recently got certified through the American Council on Exercise as a personal trainer, and through the Silver & Fit program to teach fitness classes to active older adults. While I’ve encountered lots of students with knee pain as a yoga teacher, I’m sure I’ll come across even more as I focus on older students. Sadly, osteoarthritis is often part of aging.
So I came to spend last Saturday morning in Colin’s squeaky clean Pearl District facility. His gym was more extensive than I’d expected for a physical therapy office, with cardio and weight machines, several types of free weights, and stretching areas. The 20 spots had sold out for the event. Lucky for me, I snuck in as number 21. Two other doctors of physical therapy, Tawnie Cowan and Kimberly Karlsgodt, were also on hand to assist us in learning the exercises.
The crowd was cheerful and friendly, and full of Colin’s fans. Many commented on tips they’d learned in his past columns. After Colin used a skeleton to describe the workings of the knee, he demonstrated the day’s exercises and divided us into five teams. Our small groups worked together on the 50-degree squat hold, bridge plus one knee extension, leg curl, side-lying hip abduction and several stretches. Colin has generously recorded videos of about 60 different exercises, including the ones we did Saturday, that you can watch here. I highly recommend the videos, although they don’t quite replicate the experience of having Tawnie exhort us to press our lower butt cheeks against the wall during the side-lying hip abduction, and to stop arching our backs. It’s much easier to cheat with a video than with a real live doctor of physical therapy watching you!
I asked Colin why he’d chosen the Humane Society, and he said he’s always had a soft spot for animals. Every few months, c.h. Physical Therapy gives back to the community by doing a charity event. One previous event raised money to benefit people who suffer from Parkinson Disease, and the next large event will raise money for breast cancer research.
By my calculations, the c.h. crew raised about $500 with Saturday’s event. That buys a lot of kitty litter! Visit the Oregon Humane Society website if you’re interested in making a donation or adopting a furry soulmate.
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Talking about Korean Vegetarian Food with Mipa Lee, aka “The Alien”
Mipa Lee, writer, artist, baker, blogger
Mipa Lee, artist, baker, vegan, and so many other things, writes a wonderful blog called Alien’s Day Out. Born in Busan, South Korea, she grew up mainly in Ghana, the Ivory Coast, England, Scotland and the US. She attended college in the US, then returned to Korea in 2006. Vegan since 2008, she is a passionate and influential veggie leader. I know she’s influential because Dylan Coyle, ESL teacher and moderator of the Seoul Veggie Club’s Facebook page, told me in an email that Mipa’s site is the “best Korean veggie site, and made me completely comfortable about moving here.” That’s a lot of influence, when your blog helps lure someone across the world.
a page from Mipa Lee's calendar, available on Etsy
You can buy Mipa’s adorable notecards on her Etsy page. And if you’re in South Korea, she will sell you baked goods. Which look extra delicious, by the way.
Mipa took time from her busy schedule to help me with my research for the Korea chapter of Vegetarian Asia: A Travel Guide. Here’s what she told me about vegan life in Korea. She has a ton more to say on her blog, so make sure to read that, too, if you’re headed to Korea soon.
Teresa: What kind of reactions do you get from Koreans when you tell them you’re vegan? Do people even know what that means?
Mipa: I usually get a wide variety of reactions, ranging from awe to scoffing, but I find that the most common reaction is surprise, followed by curiosity. Most do not understand the word “vegan” so I have to explain to them that it is a strict form of vegetarianism, and then specifically mention that this includes all seafood, eggs and dairy. Most Koreans are familiar with the concept of vegetarianism for health reasons, but less so for ethical and environmental concerns, so they are naturally curious about my reasons for going vegan.
really cute fish drawing by Mipa Lee
Teresa: What are the easiest vegetarian or vegan foods for a non-Korean speaking visitor to find in an ordinary restaurant (since it can be hard to locate vegetarian restaurants)?
Mipa: The easiest dish for a vegan visitor to get would be bibimbab which is rice mixed with various seasoned vegetables and usually topped with a fried egg. It is a very common dish and easy to modify to your dietary needs since all the different components are assembled in the bowl before serving. You just have to ask them to leave out the egg or any meat. Most restaurants do not include meat, but it’s always best to be safe.
Teresa: Any advice to vegetarian/vegan visitors to Korea?
Mipa: Besides doing some research ahead of time and finding veg-friendly restaurants online, I think learning some key phrases in Korean will help in ordering dishes in restaurants that are not necessarily veg-friendly. You might want to print out a card in Korean which states your dietary needs so that you can just show that to the server. Check this link with useful vocab and phrases.
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Running with the Vegans in Tokyo
Junko Hosoi is a yoga teacher, translator and avid runner. In fact, she founded the Japan Vegan Runners Club. She helped me understand what it’s like to be a vegetarian in Japan while I was researching the 2012 edition of Vegetarian Asia: A Travel Guide. Here’s our interview, which was conducted via email in January, 2012.
Junko Hosoi, founder of the Japan Vegan Runners Club
Teresa: What do you think is the current attitude toward veganism/vegetarianism in Japan?
Junko: The majority of the Japanese people are still very indifferent about veg*nism; they have never met vegetarians or never think such people exist. Or people assume vegetarians are always foreigners, never Japanese, or people who cannot eat meat because of their religious reasons or health issues. In that sense, people know very little about vegetarianism/veganism.
On the bright side, the number of vegan/vegetarian restaurants and cafes is increasing, mainly in big cities, and a growing number of young people are becoming vegetarians and active in activities such as the vegetarian festivals held in Kyoto and Tokyo. Although these annual festivals are not too huge, they are lively, on solid ground, and popular among the vegetarian community and people who are interested in such a lifestyle. Nagoya, a city in between Kyoto and Tokyo, also started a similar annual festival last year. I feel that more people become interested in veganism/vegetarianism from consciousness toward healthy eating habit and ecological living rather than animal rights, and then later they realize the animal issues. But this is only my subjective point of view, so I could be wrong. On another note, the Japan Vegetarian Society runs a Meat Free Monday campaign through their activities.
Teresa: How did you decide to give up meat and how was your choice accepted by family and friends?
Junko: Through my practice of yoga, I read a book written by an Indian saint, and one of the chapters in the book was about vegetarianism explained from many points of view, not only ahimsa (non violence) but also various aspects such as climate change, factory farming, world hunger, etc. When I read the chapter, I decided to become vegetarian. Then next year, I became vegan. My family accepted it very well. My parents made maybe a couple of complaints but that was it. I do not live with my parents, but when I go home, our dinner tends to be just vegan. My parents do not eat so much meat either, and they are fine eating simple traditional vegan Japanese foods. So I feel lucky about the family situation.
As for friends, I already had yogi friends, and they understood my choice easily although most of them were not veg*n. After I became vegetarian/vegan, I started making more vegetarian/vegan friends through vegetarian related activities and I started hanging out with more vegetarian people than non-vegetarian friends. I also started a group called Japan Vegan Runners Club, and through the running activities, I made good vegetarian connections. So people whom I hang out with naturally changed, and I did not need to seek acceptance.
Teresa: How do you think Japanese people see their relationship with animals?
Junko: I think Japanese people love pet/companion animals, but are indifferent about animals they eat and/or exploit. People reason that we need to eat life, including plants and animals so that we should thank the food (life) and should never waste it. But the reality is, I think, most people never question what they eat really and how they exploit the lives of animals. Celebrities openly talking about animal rights, veganism, anti-fur, etc. like in the U.S. or in Europe is almost non-existent in Japan as if it were a taboo subject in their industry (I guess it IS a taboo in fact, or they just have no clue).
As for the pet situation, owning an expensive animal seems like a fashion. It is almost sickening in my opinion seeing all those designer dogs in people’s bags and baby animals sold in pet shops. Public awareness toward animal testing and the fur/leather industry seems to be still very behind compared to other industrialized countries, although there are activists and animal rights groups very active in these areas like JAVA (Japan Anti-Vivisection Association) and Animal Rights Center . This is only my subjective point of view plus I myself am not an activist in the animal issues so I cannot comment much on this topic.
Teresa: Any advice for travelers to Japan?
Junko: Eating out in the big cities like Tokyo and Kyoto is fairly easy because there are many vegan/vegetarian restaurants. Trying Shojin Ryori at an old temple should be interesting, too, to see what the traditional Japanese vegan cuisine is like. The Japanese streets and addresses can be tricky, and the directions to the small vegetarian café you are heading for might be complicated, so prior research is advisable. There are some very useful online directories. VegeTokyo has a good list of English directories on their top page. If you eat at a non-veg*an place, you should know that many Japanese dishes contain fish stock even though they don’t contain any meat. Izakaya (Japanese bar) -type of place may be useful because they have lots of small dishes and some of them can be easily veg*n. Buying processed foods at a regular market or a convenience store may be difficult for travelers who don’t read or speak Japanese. Seemingly vegan foods might contain animal ingredients, and sometimes even Japanese cannot tell by looking at the ingredients list (I have made mistakes, too). If you are not sure (and if you are a strict veg*n), you should ask someone, but you should be aware sometimes they might make a mistake (or they don’t really care too much) because highly processed foods have so many additives that you cannot easily guess the real source of each ingredient. I think this is not unique to Japan; this can be true anywhere in the world. If you are not sure, I recommend buying simple foods with little processing and few ingredients, or unprocessed fresh vegetables and fruits (Japanese fruits are generally very good!). If you go to a natural food market (there are a plenty of those at least in the big cities; not necessarily vegetarian, though), the staff are knowledgeable so they can advise on your veg*n needs.
Lastly, come join my running club for jogging in central Tokyo and/or a good vegan carbo-loading after the run!
