Officially the Republic of India, this country is huge, the seventh largest by geographic area and the second most populous country. Thanks to the influence of Great Britain, which colonized and occupied it from the early 19th century until 1947, when it gained its independence after a nonviolent revolution led by the famous promoter of nonviolence, Mahatma Ghandi, English speakers can get along quite well in most provinces. Because it's so large, you will want to plan your trip carefully. Even if you’re in the country for quite a while, you won't be able to visit very much of it. It's extremely multicultural since settlers have come to its shores for such a long time. For example, Goa, on the west coast of India, was settled by Portuguese merchants in the early 16th century. Portuguese family names are still prominent here even though the small state was taken over by India in 1961 after 450 years of colonization. Goa draws many visitors every year from all over the world. The soil here is rich in minerals and humus and grows wonderful fresh tropical foods. This is only one of the many cultural groups that make up the diversity of India, but agriculture is an important component of the economy and raw foods are available just about everywhere. In addition, rare herbs and spices grow here, so the potential for extraordinary culinary delights can be anticipated. You can go to www.tourindia.com for information about exploring India.

This truly beautiful country offers four regions: mountains and forests in the north; the Central Plains; the farm lands of the northeast plateau, and tropical islands on the coastline of the south. It is one of the few countries in the world that is still a monarchy, and King Rama IX has reigned for over 50 years. It draws many international visitors because of its hospitable welcoming of strangers and its tropical climate. The largest cultural group is native Thai, but there are many Chinese and Malay immigrants as well as several minorities. Because it's a crossroads in its part of the world, it is culturally diverse and well integrated in spite of it. This is a very pleasant country to visit, I have been there three times and I am planning another trip next year to do a 10 day Vipassana Mediation. Thailand's cuisine is one of the world's healthiest. A profusion of fresh produce, with a balanced complement of aromatic herbs and spices provide healthy, satisfying nourishment for the raw-foodist. Papayas, bananas, as well as other tropical fruits and great vegetables at fresh markets are available in abundance. Visit www.tourismthailand.org for more information. To find restaurants in many towns in this country, visit www.happycow.net.

Our home, my wife and I live in this beautiful country, well mannered, polite and extremely thoughtful people it makes a wonderful place for a visit. Even though we have raw food classes here in Japan, many Japanese traditional foods are raw. Like nato, umeboshi, nama shoyu, pickles, and a lot more. Of course be careful not to say nama (which means raw), you will probably end up with sashimi. The notion of raw food is more or less well-accepted in this culture,excluding raw meat and fish, it is something out of the ordinary however it is slowly but surely catching on! The website of the Japan National Tourist Organization is www.jnto.go.jp. Two good websites for raw food in Japan: www.lifeclinic.jp and www.lifecollection.co.jp.

My father lives in Sydney, and we visit him and my step mother at least once a year. Australia is a raw food heaven. Australia is loaded with exotic fruits, raw nuts, vegetables, oils and more. Each time we go there we feel like kids in a candy store. The people are fun-loving and friendly, and this huge country has much to offer to the tourist, so there's no wonder Americans love to visit. The language is English, admittedly an accent (dialect) strange to American ears, but understandable for the most part. Raw-foodism is popular here. The largest community and shop in the country is Raw Pleasure (www.raw-pleasure.com.au). Go to www.vegansocietynsw.com to find raw-foodist meeting groups and have fun.

An island country located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, I have been to this beautiful place a couple of time. My family and I use to visit Signapore as a child and when I turned 19 I felt a little nostalgic and decided to explore this country once more. This modern, bustling city is a fascinating place to visit. The sixth wealthiest country in the world, it has long been an important commercial and military center. Because tourism plays an important role in its economy, you’ll find a visit here enjoyable, even more so if you are a raw foodist. There is a very diverse group of vegetarians/vegans and people who are interested in vegetarianism that meet on the first and third Saturday each month at vegetarian/vegan restaurants. Visit www.ntu.edu.sg for a list of vegetarian restaurants.

By TTS Cofounder Botanical Chef Omid Jaffari