Hey you! If you’re reading this, maybe something clicked in your head recently. A documentary that turned your stomach, or a look you shared with a cow in a field on the side of the road. Or maybe a conversation with someone who planted a seed in your mind. You became aware of animal suffering and you thought “what if I stopped eating living beings?” Well, welcome to this adventure. Because yes, it really is an adventure. Not something you do overnight, not a decision you make on a Tuesday morning and you’re done by Wednesday. It’s a whole journey that leads to a kind of inner peace. And I’m going to tell you about mine, with all its twists and turns, its massive waves of doubt and its beautiful discoveries.

I wasn’t born vegan, I became one out of conviction

I didn’t grow up in a community of yogis eating sprouted seeds for breakfast. But I still had it in me, you know? A soft spot for living things, a natural curiosity for doing things differently, a little something that meant questions about right and wrong never left me alone.

And then one day, something shifted. Nothing spectacular, no bolt of lightning. More like a slow buildup of contradictions between my values and my plate. Images, things I read, moments of awareness piling up and one morning you wake up and you just know. You know you can’t pretend anymore. That eating a living being whose life was taken away, who was deprived of freedom, it’s just not something you can do anymore.

So there you go, I took the leap. And I’m not going to tell you it was wonderful from day one because that would be a lie. It wasn’t hard per se, but it was disorienting. Like, really disorienting. You open your fridge, you look at your cupboards and you realize you have absolutely no idea what to make yourself to eat. It sounds like a small thing but it’s weirdly unsettling. Your whole life you’ve built your meals around meat or fish and suddenly you have to rethink everything. Your habits, your routines, your everyday recipes, all of it goes out the window and you start from scratch.

No, vegan does not mean eating sad soy patties

OK so this is the thing that annoys me the most. The image people have of veganism. Like you tell them you don’t eat meat anymore and they immediately picture you chewing on some dry industrial soy patty in a corner looking miserable. But no! So much no! Being vegan is NOT about replacing every piece of meat with a plastic-wrapped substitute that tastes like nothing. That’s the lazy version of the whole thing, the one from the food industry trying to sell you “plant-based steaks” at 5 bucks a pack. Bad food? No thank you!

Being vegan doesn’t mean you can’t be a foodie. Not even close. It’s actually the opposite. Since I changed my diet, my palate woke up. I discovered spices I didn’t know existed, flavor combinations I never would have imagined, new textures. Before, I ate pretty much the same things without really thinking about it. Now every meal is a little exploration based on the seasons. And that, honestly, is pretty amazing.

The real game changer is getting inspired by those who know what they’re doing

The real turning point for me, the moment everything clicked, was when I stopped trying to “veganize” Western recipes and started looking elsewhere. Toward cultures where millions of people have been eating incredibly well without meat for centuries. Like Indian food. Oh my God, Indian food! Creamy dahls that warm your body and soul, fragrant coconut milk curries, warm naan bread, crispy vegetable samosas. The richness is just unreal. And Japanese food too. Miso soups, pickled vegetables, stir-fried noodles with mushrooms, tofu prepared the way they do it over there and not the way we do it here (because yes, there’s a world of difference between the two, trust me).

That’s when I really started having a blast. I dug through blogs, watched videos, tried stuff out. Sometimes it was a hit on the very first try. And sometimes, well, how do I put this, it was a memorable disaster. My first attempt at homemade vegan cheese had the texture of putty and a taste that even my dog refused to try. But that’s the game! You try, you fail, you try again, you find your groove. Little by little I built my own collection of recipes, the ones that light me up, the ones I make over and over again with pure joy.

Yes it’s true, it does take time in the kitchen

I’m not going to lie to you about this because I think it’s important to be honest. Eating well as a vegan takes time. More than throwing a steak in a pan. You have to prep, peel, chop, soak legumes, keep an eye on things simmering away. At first it can be a little discouraging, especially if you’re the type who wants things done fast.

But you know what? It’s just a matter of getting organized. Nothing more. And I found my system, it’s dead simple but it’s a game changer. For anything that’s slow-cooked, dahls, curries, veggie stews… I always make enough for two or three meals. You spend a good hour in the kitchen on Sunday, fill up some jars and you’re set for several days. Cook once, eat three times. It’s as simple as that.

At first I really struggled. Everything took forever. I was doing it all wrong. I felt like I was spending my entire life behind my pots and pans. And now, with practice, it just flows. Really. I don’t even think about it anymore. My hands know what to do, I know my recipes by heart. And sometimes I even improvise with whatever I have on hand. And more than anything, I discovered that I love it. Cooking beautiful produce, smelling the spices, stirring something simmering gently, chopping vegetables of every color… It’s become one of my daily pleasures. A moment just for me.

What it brought me (and I really didn’t see it coming)

Let’s talk about the benefits because there are plenty. First, the energy. That’s the thing that surprised me the most. Since going vegan I’ve had insane energy. I feel lighter and clearer in my head. More alive, plain and simple. I’m not saying it’s magic or that it works the same for everyone. But for me it was transformative and nobody had warned me about that. That was the best surprise of this whole journey.

And then there’s the money side! Brace yourself for this one because meat is crazy expensive! We don’t even notice anymore because we’re so used to it, but when you replace meat or fish with lentils, chickpeas, dried beans, rice, seasonal vegetables… your grocery bill drops like crazy. For someone like me who chose not to waste her life trying to earn a living, believe me that matters a whole lot.

My life in a van, the real one. Far from Instagram’s serial fakers

Because here’s the thing, I chose freedom. I live in my converted van with my pup (the best travel companion in the universe, it’s a scientific fact). And when I say van life, I’m not talking about what you see on social media with the fairy lights, the photogenic smoothie bowls artfully placed on a blanket and the digital nomads doing it because it’s trendy.

I’m talking about real van life. The kind where sometimes it’s cold, where you spend an hour looking for a water source, where your shower is a bucket and a washcloth, where nothing is easy but everything has meaning. I travel, I stop wherever I want, I wake up to landscapes that take my breath away. I soak in the beauty of this world and I try to live in line with my values.

And veganism fits right into all of that. Dried legumes keep incredibly well, they’re light to carry and they don’t mind the heat. No fridge needed for lentils. No stress with the cold chain. No meat going bad after two days in the summer. It all comes together naturally, almost as if this lifestyle was made to go hand in hand with it.

One last little word, from me to you

There you go. Who am I to tell you what you should eat or how you should live. This post is just my experience, my piece of the journey, told with honesty. And I wanted to share it especially with you if you’ve been asking yourself questions lately. You who feel that something doesn’t sit right on your plate anymore but who’s hesitating because it seems complicated or too radical. I just wanted to tell you that it’s not as complicated as you might think at first. You don’t need to be perfect right out of the gate. Nobody is. When it comes to all of this, the only advice I can offer is to go at your own pace and get inspired by people who are thriving.

And if you’re already vegan and you’re passing through, hey there! I’d love for us to share our experiences, our beginner struggles, our favorite recipes, our best tips… Don’t hesitate to leave a comment to encourage me to keep this blog going. Maybe it’s a pipe dream, but what if we built a little community of kind-hearted people who chose to eat differently? I would love that so much. I asked the site’s tech team to open a vegan space on the NovaFlow and they said yes right away, agreed it was something NovaFuture was really missing. Me, who hates social media, if someone had told me one day I’d be running an online space I never would have believed it. But I’m getting sidetracked LOL If you want to chat about veganism you can join this NovaFlow and to reach me it’s easy, just type @amy in the NovaFlow. And then we can follow each other to help our cause grow.

See you very soon, take care of yourselves and of all the living beings who share this beautiful planet with us.

With love,

Amy