Those who know me well, know that I’m vegetarian, but people who are just acquaintances might not know this. I don’t announce it from the roof tops like the stereotypical vegans and vegetarians, in fact, I like to keep quite about it if at all possible.
Probably just as frequently if not more than any other question about myself do I get the question “Why are you vegetarian?” I understand the curiosity, but it is a bit exhausting to answer especially if you are with a large group of people who all want to chime in on my dietary habits. I’ve had to deal with this curiosity a good deal in the states, so try to imagine the more intense, more confused glances I get outside the US. It can be a tad overwhelming.
But before I dive into vegetarianism outside the US, I do need to clarify for those who do not know why I am vegetarian. My veggie story begins about 10 years ago shortly after thanksgiving (got to get in that last turkey). I’d recently watched several videos meat related, not necessarily advertising vegetarianism, but just documentaries explaining how typical chicken nuggets are made, and how they process the majority of meat American eat. I was super grossed out to say the least. I couldn’t look at meat the same so I casually thought I’d try out vegetarianism, no long term commitments in mind.
My decision was casual, but the response I got from my family turned me stubborn. They claimed it was just a phase and that I would grow out of it, and so I have to admit part of the reason I’ve been vegetarian this long is out of defiance from my family. As the years passed and I made my point I grew to really enjoy my dietary habits and the new foods I got to experiment with as a result of needing different nutrition I would normally get from meat. The years formed habit and over time even the thought of eating meat made me feel queasy. Now I go to school in California, and it has never been easier or tastier to be vegetarian! While I love the ability to be vegetarian, I’m no longer as stubbornly committed to it as I once was.
My first international trip that I made as an adult was two summers ago. A friend who would be traveling with me asked me if I would be open to eating meat while in the foreign country and I instinctively said “No!” I couldn’t abandon my determination to be vegetarian. However, my friend explained to me that she was vegetarian by necessity because her body couldn’t handle the hard substance. She was light years more experienced in cross culture than me and told me that even with her health restrictions, she had been in cross cultural situations where she ate meat. Perplexed I asked her why she didn’t just explain to her host that meat upset her stomach. She said she could have, the host probably would have allowed her not to eat it, but it would be a disgrace Americans do not fully understand. Because oftentimes when you travel to a third world country, the meat they supply to you is an enormous luxury and rarity and they are supplying it especially for you. They probably worked especially hard in the previous days to ensure that meat was available to their guests. To refuse the meat, is to reject their sacrifice, to say what they have provided is not up to your lofty standards.
I more recently have experienced another reason why it is improper to refuse meat in international countries. Here in Egypt, the people I have been around are not living in shacks with barely enough food to get by. Meat is not as luxurious of an item, yet it is still insensitive to refuse it. Why? The best way to describe it is culture. Egyptians pride themselves by their culture’s food, in a way I had previously only ascribed to the Italians. This cultural reason for eating meat seems much more grey to me than the impoverished reason for eating meat. To me it seems easier to eat meat because it was hard earned and a gold-like gift, but when it is a matter of cultural pride, it can be harder for me to see the reason why I should eat it.
However, when Egyptians want to share their food with you, they are not only sharing their pride in their country, but welcoming you into their country. This is how they help foreigners immerse in the culture. Perhaps on some level they understand how different their culture is from what we are use to and are helping us adjust. Food brings family together and family is the utmost importance to Egyptians.
So far, I’ve been in three different situations where I’ve eaten meat while here in Egypt. All three of my hosts had been aware of my preferred dietary habits, but all insisted on me “at least trying the meat”. This seemed a bit odd to me as an American. In America if someone says they don’t like fish, a host won’t make them try their particular fish, “just to try it”, because that sets up the recipient for failure. If I continually refuse the food, I might seem rude and close-minded, but if I try it and genuinely don’t like it, its rude to say so. The recipient would have to say “Oh yeah that’s good! But I’m satisfied with that for now”. This type of awkward exchange apparently doesn’t phase the Egyptian host though. Even after my obvious hesitation they still persist and I have always tried it and never liked it, but it was my effort in trying it that finally satisfied my hosts.
My hosts understand that I am only here for a short time, and simply want my experience to be as full as it possibly can. They don’t want me to miss a single enjoyable aspect of Egyptian life while I’m here and so they will be incredibly persistent, but its all for my sake.
If I am ever worried about how the food will impact my stomach, I give out a little prayer that my vegetarian friend taught me years ago, “Lord if I get it down, please help me keep it down”. And you know what? I’ve yet to get sick from meat even after it being 10 years since I’ve eaten it. The Lord works in mysterious and wonderous ways, especially when you love on his children and attempt to love and learn their cultures.
Camel Uber? 