Thanksgiving

So, Thanksgiving was great! Christine and Cecilia, two other American expats on the same exchange program, hosted 11 of us at their place for Thanksgiving. This was the first I'd celebrated the holiday away from family, and I did miss that. It did feel weird going to work on Thursday morning and seeing the news stories on the web focusing on Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade and Black Friday sales, yet everyone worked as if it was nothing here. However, we all went over to C&C's place for a late-ish dinner and were blown away! Christine had taken the day off and had apparently not just spent the day preparing, but also the better part of the preceding week.

The turkey was on a platter on the table, golden brown, ready for Norman Rockwell. Whereas I'm living adequately but by no means extravagantly in my flat here, they had full place settings for all 11 of us, with coordinated EVERYTHING. The photos I posted yesterday barely do it justice. Oh, and the food was amazing. All of it. The veggies brought by everyone, the pies Cecilia baked, the turkey, the two types of stuffing, the homemade cranberry bread, everything!

So, no, I wasn't home with the family over Thanksgiving. However, for not being able to be there for it, this was one of the best alternatives I could think of -- great food, great friends, and great times.