A quick visit to a plant-based themed small expo in Brighton vegan festival

Personally I had been to art & craft expo, design expo, motor industry expo, pharmaceutical expo.  Often expo-goers can see /experience/ taste things way before the mass see them in high syrret shops/ supermarkets.  Nice😄

Since I may not be travelling to London for the big one mext month, so, on Saturday I went briefly to the small one organised by Viva!

Hilton Metropole Brighton.

 It has catering hall, talks and many different kinds of stalls in the large hall.

 Not too big - a comfortable size.  

I got some nice stuff.

I only managed to go there around 4 pm. Official entrance fee on the door is a fiver. But there were early birds tickets & other packages.  

(No need to walk all the way from hotel main entrance.  Use the side entrance from Cannon Street  to the exhibition hall.)

To avoid missing things out, and to prevent impulse buying, I started with a quick walk through. Then I got a mixed fruit juice before revisited some stalls. 

I could not buy everything I was interested in but good to see interesting things. 

The guy at the artisan green tea and macha stall  gave me 2 magazines😄 which he got from other stalls.  So as a recipocate gesture, I bought a pair of wooden chopsticks from his stall. (I could not drink tea that quick after the juice)  That stall sells nice glass tea pots, ceramic tea cups, too. And macha protein balls.

 In the 2 magazines,  and the official Viva magazine(not photoed), there are lots of recipes and useful informations.

I only bought a Spanish ceramic grating dish, and a natural hand-made shampoo soap bar.  Ha!

Another thing I surprisedyself is I only picked up a leaflet or two, plus, from the general area outside the hall a Great Taste Book 2017-18.

Many people have misconceptions about vegan "festivals" . They are basically another themed expositions (expo) , or  exhibitions ,  where products, services & talks , music, etc, took place. 

👫Who are interested in such event?

Those who care about
🌳Health, youth, beauty, healing.
🌳Animals
🌳 Envirnoment
🌳 Spiritual & religious purity,
virtues & integrity
🌳 Catering / beverage

Diary-free egg-free versions
of chocolate, cakes & desserts...
Kind products...

And naturally , related  businesses showcase their products & services under one roof. Handy, isn't it?
 
The first time I tried plant based and raw vegan stuff was about 9 or 10 years ago from a particulat pioneering group far away from where I live. Not much choices in where I lived.

Isn't it that such "festival",  or expo , a nice way to see things outside high street shops and see beyond the limitations of average supermarket? 💡

😄Good to see more plant-based food, drinks, snacks, etc , are reaching different supermarkets & shops this year.

❤May all people live a healthy life with plant-based food.
🌿🍒🍐🍓🍈🍇🍍🍎🍋🍉🍌🍅
🍏🍊🍑🌰🌻🌾🌽🌼🍃

2017 Lent diet

Last year 2016, during Lent,
we used the lovely short course of "40 Days in the Word". (Rick Warren)

This year 2017, Lent,
the church here only suggested us to do 40 good things.

Though I do not eat meat from 4 legged animals & 2 legged animal,


I love good seafood, fresh fishes 🐟...


So,  I decided to stop eating fish.
And I also attended a VegFest for the first time.
:) 

Lots of interesting things there.
Like a parallel universe.

I am not a vegan yet.
(It will take a very high IQ,
a deep deep love of animals,
a very very compassionate heart,
lots of resources, support, determination, strong will power ...
to be a vegan.)
 
This period,
my meals will be a variations and rota of vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan.

confession of my diet about Seafood

I am learning to be
 & aspired to be a
 vegetarian, vegan,
raw vegan.

Not quite yet.☺
🍣🍤🐟🍥🍢🍌

I still love chocolate, cakes, seafood.

With all I have read about the problems with modern mass-produced meat,

it is easy to ditch flesh/meat
 with 4 legged animals which have
heart, brains, eyes, mouth, ears;
emotions, feelings,
mother-offspring-ties
& games/poultry/fowl.

I am saving myself from anti-biotics, growth hormones,
GMO & accumulated pesticides herbicides, toxins, & cruelty.

Ocassionally I also read about water pollution, too.

So, for the time being, I am trying to choose seafood
which are

not farmed,
not from Pacific Ocean,
not from known polluted rivers & deltas (eg, Vietnam, PRC China).
not frozen if possible,
not defrozed if possible.
not huge size fishes 
    which are higher up in food chain
not crayfish and those 
    which feed near polluted rubbish/debris. 
not turtoise or turtle types. 

For health.  

Not expensive.
Cheaper than getting fish & chips
when I buy relatively  fresh ones
and boil at home,
serve with noodle, etc.

Of course, when I eat out,
 there is not control over
 the sources or types of seafood
 in the shops or restaurants.

Not sure when I can get over
 this Pescetarianism stage.


I know that the 
evolve stages/levels
 more or less like this:

carni vore

omni vore

flexi tarian

Pesce tarian

ocasional vege tarian (twice a month / once a week etc etc)

vege tarian

vegan , and herbi vore

fruit arian

Liquid arian (juice, water)

super long term fasting / Breath arian

Basically I would like to respect the original design of the
design director as listed in the blue print
Genesis 1:29

(I do feel uneasy buying or eating seedless produce.
 There is no long term study on the effect of eating food with the
reproductive gene shut-down, that includes some GMO )

real sprouts salad

This is mixed seeds sprouts.
To reduce the use of seasoning,
I use ripe pineapple and juice, 
dried raisins & mixed nuts.

The above was from commercially mass produced.

Real sprouts from seeds
are very good for health,
especially eaten raw.

If interested, there are various organic mixed seeds that
we can sprout at home...
Note: need frequent rinsing if you live in hot humid area.
To make life easier,
there are also specialist sprouting kit & tools on www.

Bread Baking experiment 6

Rye Bread with Hemp milk, mixed seeds, mixed fruits.

Mixed : yeast, sugar, water,
Mixed : the two types of flour & hemp milk





To let the yeast work better with the flour first,
I added other at different time.

Mixed and put in the baking tray/container.
I try to keep my fingers clean.
I use spoons & forks.
No kneading.

I added some little holes with fork in the middle.
and two spoons of water on top.

Pre - heat oven.
Gas mark 6. For 30 - 40 minutes.

Ingredients:

Rye flour... 10 heaped soup spoons.
Bread mix : (Mixed frain, mixed seeds) 5 heaped soup spoons.

Hemp milk 18 level soup spoons

Yeast  1 level soup spoons
Coconut sugar 1 soup spoons
Filtered Water 2 soup spoons

later add :
Salt.............. 0.5 teaspoon.
e.v. olive oil... 1 level soup spoons

mixed seeds ...........3 soup spoons,
mixed dried fruits...  a handful.

waited for 40 minutes

one pound rectangular oven tray for break/cake, ceramics.
 
preheated oven
put the tray on top rack near door.
gas mark 6.

baked 30 minutes.
stay inside oven for 10 minutes.

Good for vegan & vegetarian.
 

Brighton ... a few hours

These two viewed from the window
of the bus passing by
the Brighton Sealife Centre & Brighton Pier.

Brighton Clock Tower.

2015 Brighton Fringe... Fringe City is a small part of thousands of events in May.
Cabaret, Drama, dances, music, comedy, gigs, street performances, visual arts, etc.

This town has over 300 000 people of all nationality.
2 universities and many colleges & schools.
Many international students, visitors, tourists, immigrants & workers from EU & other parts of the world.



Over 40% of population has a bachelor degree or above.
(academic qualification/education standard)
 

Many restaurants and shops cater for
vegetarian +/ vegan +/ raw vegan +/
organic vegetarian/ organic raw vegan diets...

The best free sugar I have ever had is from this
Infinity Foods Kitchen. Fair Trade Organic Raw Cane Sugar!!
 

Infinity Foods Kitchen, Loving Hut, Wai Kika Moo Kau, etc.

Also there are more shops selling 
healthy, ethical, environmental-friendly,
vegetarian/vegan +/ organic products.
So glad.
More educated / informed people / awaken people / truth-seekers here.


Many magazines on vegetarian / vegan diet/recipes, etc.

Itsu has many salads, soups, Japanese food.
Takeaway bento boxes.





 Many interesting shops in the Kensington Garden, North Lane, Church street, etc.

A touch of humour and fun --
 the pub is named "The Office"

Nowadays difficult to find good art material shop.
 (many closed due to internet & cheap stuff importers)
 There is one in Brighton --Bond Street!

my meals with veg & fruits

Recent years more people are becoming health-conscious.
Meatless Monday, Green Monday, 5 a day, Healthy-eat, etc.
I am not a vegetarian yet.
But I do have more veg & fruits everyday. 

This is made by a local restaurant when I asked for mixed vegetable cook in water.
Not very imaginative.  Great if he can add peas, beans, etc.
I added a bit of ginger, spring union, sesame, pepper.

This cream colour mashy stuff is
organic houmous (from chickpea, cooked and seasoned)

More and more vegetable +fruit juices/smoothies are available on shelves.
Different brand names, even supermarkets' own labels.
I also like young coconut water/juice.
Preferably unsweetened and no additives.

This one below
I added taramasalata, spices and sesame oil.
Rarely do I use ready made salad dressing or sources.
I like variety of adding good
vinegar / salsa / curry / houmous / taramasalata / organic yogurt...
+ good spices,
+ good oil like coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, sesame oil...

Fruits, melons, vegetables, potatoes familes,
beans, peas, sprouts, nuts, seeds, seaweeds,slow dried fruits, etc.

Eating these raw, "living food", 
we can enjoy the life force, the enzymes, many vitamins & minerals, etc.

Heating above 45 degree Celsius will destroy most of those!

I will try raw vegan when weather is warmer
and
ideally after I bought really powerful blender.

I gave my Vitamix to my sister/parents.

That is great for making fresh smoothies,
especially green smoothies and even banana icecream.

Wait till I settle down later this year or next,
 I shall buy one again.

(I eat lots of chocolate)  ;)

2015 new and open

Do you read small prints before you buy?
How long you spend in supermarkets?

Money/Profit or Virtues/Truth/Values ?

Choices.

I came, I observe, I compare, 
I think, I feel, 
...
right, I value culture and virtues....
I try to be health conscious, too.
Right, I have read about the rationales behind
organic food, non-GMO food, raw food, veganism, fasting, etc.

 I like art, design, crafts, etc.

Though I am not a Japanese,
I like Japanese culture.
Thought I am not a Brit,
I like England/UK.

Though I am ethnically chinoise,
I do not recognise the communist party as the orthodox of Chinese.
(And my view is Hong Kong has never belonged to the communist party before 1997.)

etc.

With this blog I hope to share more, too.

o...... Why this blog?

Haven't you also noticed the pros and cons of
Facebook, Pinterest, Tweeter, and Blogs?

;)