Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Eating vegan on the Faroe Islands









I have been living on the Faroe Islands since January (with a break for the summer), and it has been such an amazing experience. I had no idea what it was like before I came here, but now I've learned to both love and hate it.


It's such a small place (50,000 inhabitants spread out on 18 islands), so far away from everything else and it's hard to find friends where we live (in a village with 1000 people). There's nothing going on outside the capital and you feel cut off from the rest of the world. And did I mention it rains 270 days of the year? No? Well, it does. But it's also the most beautiful place I've ever seen. It's only mountains, mountains and more mountains, with valleys between them and villages at the foot. The ocean is always nearby and you will always have an amazing view. A lot of the mountains can be climbed and when you reach the top, it's just  heartbreaking how beautiful it is. I can not describe the feeling when reaching the top with heavy breathing and tired legs from the climb, but rest assure, it's amazing. I can't stop smiling. The people hare are also very friendly, and you can be sure to get help if needed.

Water break during a hike.
I wouldn't want to live here forever, but this year has been a great experience. During those rainy days or when you can almost touch the clouds, I curse a lot and tell everyone how I hate it here. But when standing on top of a mountain, I take it all back, again and again.


I'm very aware that most people don't know so much about this place, so please ask if you want to know anything! I'll be happy to answer. 



To the topic; being vegan here. The Faroese cuisine is based on lamb and fish, and also includes, whale and birds. It's a very harsh place for growing vegetables, and it's basically only potatoes and rhubarb that is grown here. For obvious reasons it has been isolated for a very long time  (hey, electricity came in the 60s) and that has of course had a big impact on their eating habits. It is not possible to pursue a vegan lifestyle here without relying on imported foods. Now, the supermarkets are filled with more international products and produce, but it's still very unusual to be vegetarian or vegan.

When I came here, I was ready for having to fight to find things to eat. In reality, it wasn't so hard. You can find a lot of dried beans and grains, there are soy/oat and rice milk, as well as non-dairy margarine. In some stores you can even find an "ecological shelf" and they carry soy creamer, yoghurt, tofu and sometimes even ice cream, but I've never bought it because it's CRAZY expensive. The hardest part is the veggies. They do not sell any local produce at all, so everything is being imported at least from Denmark (or Iceland!!), but mostly from really far away, like Spain. That yields veggies and fruit that had to ripen in a box somewhere on the ocean = it does not taste very much. And I mean, even in Sweden it can be hard to find more than the basics of vegan food.

But we have learned to make the most out of the little we have. We do everything from scratch, as there is no short cut's available. Also, food is very expensive here. It can very a lot between different foods, but we really try not to buy the most expensive stuff, meaning we almost only have basics. I mean, even chocolate for baking is a luxury here! Come on. Since we never buy tofu, we get bored with beans. So we make seitan from scratch ( by kneading the starch out of wheat flour) at least once a month. Lately, there has been a lot of different offers every week for produce and we have found ourselves with much more veggies than usual and it's such a relief. I wonder how long it will last...

12 comments:

  1. It looks like a beautiful place! But your post reminds me how much I take for granted living outside of Washinton DC.

    What sort of things do you do there for fun besides hiking?

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  2. Beautiful pictures from the Færøerne. I hope I'll get the chance to visit one day (after all, the flights from Denmark are not all too expensive). :)

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  3. Candy Beans: Well... In our village, there's only church, soccer and the youth club (which is why I'm here from the beginning, I'm a youth leader here), meaning nothing fun to do for me! I have friends in the capital, which is one hour away, so I sometimes go there to visit them. Over there, there are cultural things as well, like concerts or movie nights at a café. But really, what we do most for fun is going to new or old places and be outside.

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  4. What a gorgeous, gorgeous place. I can see how it's really difficult to navigate being vegan there--I'm looking forward to hearing more about how you manage it. What veggies are most easily obtained?

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  5. Beautiful photos. Over the past 6 years, I have spent a lot of time living on the southern tip of South America (in Patagonia - including some of the islands off the coast), and your blog reminds me a lot of life there. It is all about the rhubarb and potatoes! (and lamb and fish for the non-vegans). And the ups and downs of living in a heart-achingly beautiful place where the climate is so harsh it hurts. One of the ups was that the lack of available food I could/would eat made me extend myself more in the kitchen - which really is the best place to be when the wind is howling and there's no warmth in sight.

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  6. Celyn: Hmm... There's a lot of roots right now. You can always get carrots, onions, cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, aubergine, broccoli, zucchini, and stuff like that. Basically, there's a lot of veggies in some stores, but it's not very often they are very nice, or they are very expensive. I just wanna have a farmers market around the corner!

    Patagonianvegan: Yeah, I've noticed that too. You need to get more creative and I love being in the kitchen when it's storming outside. I've figured, that if I can get along this well here food wise, I will probably be fine at most other places too!

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  7. I'm so captivated by anything related to island life. This blog is beautiful and I consider myself lucky to have stumbled upon it! Looking forward to your remaining MoFo posts!

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  8. wow, I love the pictures and tales of your Faroe Island lives! The pictures are really enchanting. Stark and beautiful. What a dedicated spirit you are to stay true your vegan beliefs even off on an isolated island. Good for you!

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  9. Your pictures are gorgeous. I wish I could send you a pile of fresh veggies.

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  10. It looks gorgeous. I feel your rain pain. Melbourne (Australia) is normally in drought but recently it has rained all through winter, spring and autumn this year- 135 days this year. It's so frustrating and that's only half what you experience. I really admire your determination to be vegan in a place like that!

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  11. Thanks for sharing what it's like to be vegan in such a remote place. I know almost nothing about the Faroe Islands.

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  12. ...And I thought being vegan was hard in Norway (where I went to visit some friends in January 2010), but that's nothing compared to where you live. o.O
    I love your blog, especially the beautiful picures!

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