To new discoveries, staying curious, aligning with your values and always traveling with kindness

Lynn is a passionate wanderer and dedicated plant-powered explorer who, alongside her partner Daniel, invites readers to join their global adventures through their captivating blog.

With a unique blend of storytelling and a commitment to veganism, Lynn not only documents their travels through stunning pictures, videos, and stories but also stays true to her values, sharing the excitement, challenges, and discoveries of living plant-based around the world.

Lynn believes in the transformative power of travel to open hearts and minds, inspiring others to make more sustainable choices and embrace the diversity and joy of global exploration. Join Lynn as she celebrates the beauty of our world, savoring unique moments and always traveling with kindness.

Meatless Movement recently had the opportunity to chat with Lynn.

Tell us more about yourself, please

My name is Lynn and I’m from Luxembourg.

Vanderlustjourney | Travel + vegan lifestyle

I turned vegetarian when I was around 12 years old and first made the connection between the piece of meat on my plate and the animals I loved so much. Having been a rather shy and introverted child and teenager, this was probably my first occasion to learn to stand on my own with my decisions and beliefs. In my early twenties, I started to learn more about veganism and was on and off about it, switching between periods where i was a strict vegan and then giving up again.

Rather surprisingly, I made the final switch during a gap year in Portugal in 2018, when I was 26. I arrived with the mindset that being vegetarian would probably be hard in Portugal outside of big cities, but soon enough I got involved with an animal activist group and participated in their activities, like holding vigils outside of slaughterhouses or joining “cube of truths” in the streets of Lisbon. When I think back about this time, it was a year where I learned what it meant to truly connect to my values.

The biggest challenge for me, and the one that had probably held me back from becoming vegan earlier, was the social aspect. I always saw myself as an easy-going, uncomplicated person, and didn’t want to become a burden for friends and family feeling like they have to adapt for me whenever they invited me over.

However, I learned that a big part of the solution lies in my own attitude, and whenever I’m invited somewhere, I suggest to bring my own food. And I will make sure to make a bigger batch, so people can taste and see how tasty vegan food actually is 😉 As a vegetarian, I relied a lot on “fake meat-options” that were fast and easy to prepare. When I turned vegan however, I started to get more interested in cooking and nutrition. Nowadays, I really enjoy to cook for myself and others!

Another big passion for me is travel, and at first I was worried that being vegan would make it more difficult to explore certain countries. Fortunately, in these last 5 years, I never encountered a problem… on the contrary, it made travel even more fun, because I find it super exciting to look for vegan restaurants far from home or discover local vegan food.

A lot of countries actually have plant-based options among their traditional food. And if this is not the case and you are in a city, a bullet-proof advice is to look for Asian or Lebanese restaurants, as they are very vegan-friendly and will always have options. And when you’re in smaller cities or villages, you can always opt for an accommodation that has a kitchen and cook for yourself with local, fresh ingredients.

For someone who is at the beginning of their meatless journey, I would advice to always remember why you made this choice in the first place. Personally, I found it for example hard to fully give up cheese in the beginning. However, whenever I craved it, i thought of all the reasons why I didn’t want to support the animal industry and how important it is for me to live in alignment with my values, which is not to harm any living being. And the good news is, your taste buds will change over time! Nowadays, I can sincerely say that cheese is not attractive to me anymore at all.

All in all I can say, that choosing a vegan lifestyle was one of the best things that happened to me. Not only does it allow me to live a life true to my values and be at peace with who I am, but it also connected me to some wonderful, like-minded people.

Last year, my boyfriend and I decided to start a blog and instagram page bringing together our two main passions: traveling and a vegan lifestyle. The idea for this first came up while planning our trip to Madeira in March 2023, and being surprised by how little info we could find online about vegan food options on the island. So, we thought, why not share the info ourselves? And so, vanderlustjourney was born! We would be thrilled if you check it out (@vanderlustjourney on instagram; http://www.vanderlustjourney.com) and connect with us 🙂