s.fowler

For the USA-ers on this forum: Have you ever spent our holiday of Thanksgiving in a foreign country? Did you try to do it "just like home"? Or did you make a celebration in the spirit of where you were? <BR>For ALL fodor-ites: Another side to this question. What experiences have you had being in a foreign country on one of their own special holidays? [I was in Vienna on the Feast of the Virgin Mary and just lucked into a church service at St. Peter's close to Kartnerstrasse. Then there was the Bastille Day in Paris... but I want to hear YOUR experiences!] <BR>And. to all fodor-ites, wherever we are, we can ALL give thanks for the ability to travel and for the opportunity to share our experiences here at fodors!

Helena

I'm celebrating Thanksgiving in the Czech Republic again this year, and although nothing will compare to my mother's fixings, I've had some great fun celebrating this holiday, in particular, overseas. <BR> <BR>In a previous job a few years ago, I was responsible for organizing the American Chamber of Commerce's Thanksgiving Ball here in Prague. We were expecting over 500 people, and everyone was expecting it to taste just like at home. My mother translated about 9 different stuffing recipes into Czech for our caterer, and our Events Committee spent months and months working out the details. At our first tasting (the chef was asked to prepare the whole dinner for 8 testers), we suddenly realized what a daunting task this would be. We had told him ahead of time that Americans like big pieces of turkey. Bigger is better - scrawny turkeys don't look good. He followed our instructions to the letter. He brought out a beautiful platter with a stunning, perfectly browned turkey arranged meticulously with the trimmings around it. We were thrilled. He asked the first taster, Sarah, what she would like, a wing, leg, white meat, etc... Sarah wanted a leg. What Sarah got was a leg and a giant piece - 1/8th of the bird - attached to the leg. The single piece of meat took up her entire plate, and the rest of us almost died laughing. Yep - it was a "big" piece. For the second tasting, we had exact specs written down for how to carve a turkey, down to how thick each slice should be. <BR> <BR>Pumpkin pie was our next adventure. The caterer insisted on finding fresh pumpkins - enough for over 60 pies - and making pumpkin pie from scratch. The first iteration was more of a pumpkin torte - about 1/2 inch thick, slathered with a mountain of whipped cream. Back then, it was hard to find all the right spicing, so he had to fly some in. In the end, after three more tastings and a ban on the whipped cream (he put it out "on the side"), the pie was great - thick, sweet, almost perfect. (the next year he took our advice and got cans of pumpkin pie filling from the Embassy). <BR> <BR>Stuffing was fun, but challenging. Everyone has a different image of stuffing, and no group of 8 people who didn't grow up together will agree on what "the right" stuffing is like. Our first test was suspiciously like Czech knedliky (dumplings) with different spicing. "make it crumbly" was the consensus. (I lost, it was my mother that provided the initial recipes, and so it seemed "right" to me - and only me). In the end, stuffing was great. <BR> <BR>I have to say that the caterer was a star. Over 60 turkeys, 60 pumpkin pies, 60 apple pies, 120 bowls of stuffing, 120 bowls of mashed potatoes, .... all done at the same time. Wow. And it tasted great. <BR> <BR>My big lesson learned, while planning this Thanksgiving Dinner for "500 of my best friends", was that culture is an incredibly important and significant thing. The food, from an American's perspective, was about as close to home-made (even though done on a huge scale) as we had hoped only in our wildest dreams. The Czechs at my table, however, were surprised - and a bit disappointed. Thanksgiving dinner, after all, is not a fancy thing - rather wholesome food, really. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin (and apple) pie - nothing nouvelle cuisine about it. After all the build-up and excitement we all showed in anticipation of the dinner, they were expecting something more exotic. <BR> <BR>For me, Thanksgiving celebrated abroad is a wonderful link back to home, and an interesting chance to reflect on parts of American culture from a very different perspective. <BR> <BR>The AmCham is doing the ball again this year - Saturday - so that's when approx. 600 Americans in Prague will celebrate and give thanks. I'm looking forward to it - especially since I now work elsewhere and didn't have to plan it! <BR> <BR>

wes fowlere

Hi, fellow Fowler Fodor fan! <BR>Late last July, my wife, daughter and I were in Langnau, Switzerland, a charming town in the Emmental. At dinner in the inn's stubli, my wife asked the pretty, young proprietress what time the shops opened in the morning. "Not at all", said she, " tomorrow is our national holiday and everything will be closed, but we will have 'festivities' in the evening. Not here, but in the village of Zazawil just 10 kms away". <BR>The following misty evening, off we went to Zazawil and found the village's parking lot converted to an outdoor beer hall with tables, benches, a tent serving beer and wine and a rostrum. No one there but us, six young men sitting at one table and a couple behind the counter at the tent. My wife ordered a glass of wine, but (she claims due to the language problems) ended up with a bottle. The three of us sat, sipping wine and wondering if the inclement weather had put an end to things. A charming woman joined us and advised that, in her words the "speechifying" was being held in the village's church but there would indeed be a parade, fireworks and bonfires on the hillsides. She offered to show us on which street the parade would be held and would mind our wine until our return. Off we went. After some minutes, we heard the sound of a marching band and could see torches in the distance. The parade approached led by, not a drum major, but a farmer pushing a wheelbarrow laden with fruits and vegetables. He was followed by two small milk carts pulled by donkeys and overloaded with children. A National Guard band, men and women in traditional costume, the Hornussen team wielding its immense spadelike paddles and children carrying candle lit Japanese lanterns, followed them in turn. On the opposite side of the street, a man in traditional costume blew lustily on a twelve foot Alpenhorn creating a sound that reverberated through the atmosphere. Retiring to the al fresco beer hall, we were brought our bottle of wine, settled down to watch immense bonfires on the hillside and engaged in conversation with two young Swiss couples. One young fellow told us that bonfires were used from ancient times to alert neighboring villages of impending invasions. I mentioned that in America's southwest, Indians had used fires and their smoke as a means of signaling. "Ah, yes, I know", said he, " I've read your comic books!" We enjoyed a delightful and memorable experience, totally unanticipated. <BR>

ilisa

Last Thanksgiving, my husband and I went to Copenhagen with friends of ours on a whim. I had never taken a vacation on Thanksgiving before that, and now I am so glad I went. It was the best holiday ever. To be completely honest, the idea of celebrating the holiday in any way never crossed our minds; we made no attempt. If we really wanted to celebrate the holiday "just like home," we would have stayed in the US. No one we met in Denmark cared that it was a holiday in the US and we didn't miss it one bit. Instead of turkey, we focused on our goal of eating salmon every day and just enjoying that wonderful city. As you can see by the time and date of this message, it is almost 4:00pm on Thanksgiving Day. My husband is working today, there is no turkey in the oven, and I am perfectly content.

Maira

Helena: Your story of Thanksgiving in Prague was a riot! I truly enjoyed it! <BR>Thanks for sharing. <BR> <BR>Ilisa: I see nothing wrong with been homesick for a day, even more so, if i'ts a special holiday....at least is not stopping a lot of people from experiencing travel abroad whenever convenient.... <BR> <BR>S (Sally or Steve?): In July 1995, my husband & I spend Bastille Day in Martinique. We had no idea what was going on. The streets were closed, festivities all around us, food, music, beer, parades, etc....We finally made it to a spanish fort in a top of a hill we had planned on touring and that's where the fireworks were been set-up for the evening show. To our surprise, the fireworks crew was two guys from Indiana who were "half-wasted" by mid-morning and seemed to have no clue what they were doing. My husband & I debated on leaving the island, sure that these "Americanos" were about to spoiled a national holiday and that the locals would not understand that we didn't know anybody from Indiana....We decided to wait (and pray!). Finally, when the fireworks show started it was the most incredible display of lights, color, music and celebration we had ever seen. It was pure magic under the stars! <BR> <BR>....these "Americanos" knew what they were doing after all!

anne

I remember a special Thanksgiving MANY years ago, when I lived in Quito, Ecuador. An American friend who was a pilot for the Ecuadorian national airline surprised us by bringing a box FULL of traditional American Thanksgiving goodies, such as yams, marshmallows, cranberry sauce - all unavailable in Quito. What fun it was to fix our dinner that year! <BR>As for celebrating a holiday in national style, I remember the fun of going out on New Years eve to see the "Old Man", a straw effigy, dressed in typical clothing, representing the previous year, who was burned at midnight. One year we were down in a tiny town on the edge of the jungle and joined the celebration there. <BR>More recently, we've been encased in a crowd of 1000's coming up from the metro to see the Bastille Day (my husbands birthday, which he likes to celebrate in France whenever possible!!) fireworks at the Eiffel Tower, and another year joined a parade carrying paper lanterns in a tiny Normandy town, dodging the firecrackers thrown around by the kids! <BR>

Joan Doyle

Dear S. Fowler: My Thanksgiving-abroad experiences can't compare with the above; indeed, they seem rather ordinary but I enjoyed them. Because my sister lives in London and I've spent the last four Novembers there, we usually marked the day and invited our British friends (as many as we could squeeze into her flat, that is) to join us. She completed a gourmet cooking course during that time and, though we didn't have turkey, we surely ate magnificently on Algerian lamb, a terrific layered fish starter, three desserts (a British custom I was not familiar with), and lots of fine wine. Earlier in the day we went to St. Paul's where the American community annually stages a lovely service. I really enjoyed our holiday abroad--and our British friends came to appreciate it too. Joan

s.fowler

Thanks for your stories people! It has made for good reading. <BR>Joan-- Your "gourmet" English Thanksgiving sounds *wonderful* -- I'm not a big turkey fan myself soooo... was one of the desserts a trifle? <BR>Helena-- I nearly died laughing at your post. How fortunate you were to have such a cooperative caterer. And how fortunate you are not to be in charge any more! <BR>Helena's story remined me of my most recent [non-Thanksgiving] cooking in a foreign country. When I was in Macedonia last spring I offered to cook an evening meal. I thought I'd do a nice spicy pasta... after all the markets were full of those gorgeous peppers and tomatoes! But my Macedonian "daughter" begged for risotto, which she loved when she was staying with us. Okay... off to the market we go.. olive oil and [pregrated] parmesan cheese weren't a problem, and they had a rice similar to, but smaller than aborio. It was the mushroom question that nearly did me in! I had to settle for some rather ordinary white button mushrooms, which Nate's mom insisted on washing and peeling. [With good reason... there were some deaths a few months ago in the south of Macedonia from mushrooms] I struggled with an electric stove, strange pans and different rice. There were a few points when I thought it would be a *total* failure, but, amazingly it worked out okay! The "seal of approval" was provided by her 16 year old brother who scraped the pan! <BR>I will be in Skopje again in March. wee. THIS time I am bringing some dried procini and arborio rice! <BR> <BR>

s.fowler

Thanks for your stories people! It has made for good reading. <BR>Joan-- Your "gourmet" English Thanksgiving sounds *wonderful* -- I'm not a big turkey fan myself soooo... was one of the desserts a trifle? <BR>Helena-- I nearly died laughing at your post. How fortunate you were to have such a cooperative caterer. And how fortunate you are not to be in charge any more! <BR>Helena's story remined me of my most recent [non-Thanksgiving] cooking in a foreign country. When I was in Macedonia last spring I offered to cook an evening meal. I thought I'd do a nice spicy pasta... after all the markets were full of those gorgeous peppers and tomatoes! But my Macedonian "daughter" begged for risotto, which she loved when she was staying with us. Okay... off to the market we go.. olive oil and [pregrated] parmesan cheese weren't a problem, and they had a rice similar to, but smaller than aborio. It was the mushroom question that nearly did me in! I had to settle for some rather ordinary white button mushrooms, which Nate's mom insisted on washing and peeling. [With good reason... there were some deaths a few months ago in the south of Macedonia from mushrooms] I struggled with an electric stove, strange pans and different rice. There were a few points when I thought it would be a *total* failure, but, amazingly it worked out okay! The "seal of approval" was provided by her 16 year old brother who scarfed down every last grain! <BR>I will be in Skopje again in March. wee. THIS time I am bringing some dried procini and arborio rice! <BR> <BR>

Doug

My wife and I often traveled to Germany and Austria during the Thanksgiving holiday. We usually didn't really even <BR>think about turkey day, but during that period of time, the Christmas season and Christkindlmarkts would open in Germany and Austria. Just walking through the markets at night, with the smells of gluhwein and stollen, the Christmas lights, the cold air (and usually some snow), and the sounds of laughing kids made us feel like the Christmas of our youth. We also experienced a wacky holiday in Salzburg at this time of year. The young adults and teenagers would dress up in furry clothes, paint their faces black and run around town with sticks to spank people. They represented Krampus (the devil) and were <BR>punishing the wicked adults. Some people seemd a bit peeved (probably the tourists) when they were whacked, but most people loved it.

s.fowler

Any contributions for this year ?

Tony Hughes

A *friend* of mine who happens to be a Fodors contributor from time to time is over in Edinburgh with me right so so we are going to Pizza Hut (they assure me that turkey is a plausible topping) for Thanksgiving tonight.

tony's*friend*

Very funny, Mr. Hughes...

tony's*friend*

Very funny, Mr. Hughes...

Maira

Tony---- please don't tell me you are bringing an (American?) friend to Pizza Hut. May I suggest Deacon Brodies, up in Lawnmarket Street? <BR> <BR>By the way, the story of your last Italian holiday had me in stiches!!!

tony's *friend*

Yes, Maira...its true. Tony has this unnatural fondness for Pizza Hut (hehehe). That's OK though, I got to spend the holiday walking around Edinburgh with a wonderful *friend*...well worth the trade-off!

Tony Hughes

Maira, we went to Deacon Brodie's last friday for a drink - far too expensive, designed to rip off tourists. Scruffy Murphy's down the road is much cheaper. <BR> <BR>Medium pan meat feast was the Thanksgiving meal by choice for both of us. <BR> <BR>Glad you liked the Bellagio story, Maira, I'm in the middle of the American trip story now.

Karen

Here, at an international study center in Bologna, we have about 65 American and 85 non-American students. We are having our Thanksgiving tomorrow night with about 300 in attendance. In a few minutes, I will leave work to meet some of the students at the macellaio (butcher) in the center of town to pick up a turkey. This will be a unfrozen,free-range kind of bird, so I am a little nervous about cooking something that is not rock-hard, won't need to thaw for two days and doesn't come with a little plastic pop-up thing when ready. I found online at epicurious.com a recipe for the turkey that uses proscuitto, which I feel compelled to do, being at ground zero for ham. I found a stuffing recipe that uses porcini, although it calls for dried, assuming of course that no one can get fresh. On my to-do list is to go from stall to stall to find the plumpest, earthiest fresh porcini in the market. Tomorrow will find me up to my elbows in fresh herbs, an Italian turkey, homemade chicken stock (have yet to find canned broth anywhere, which is just as well) and conversion charts. Wish me luck.

lola

My favorite Thanksgiving abroad was in the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia, in 1989. I was alone, with a car and driver, on holiday from a video shoot in Thailand--long story. Anyway, I was feeling lonely, and had a chicken dinner at my hotel dining room. The chicken came with a little American flag stuck in it. The waiter knew it was Thanksgiving, as he has worked in the states, and we had a nice talk and a felt anything but lonely at that moment.