Cadi Duncan, 134 TESS
Thanksgiving, a holiday I anxiously await each year, was, in Thailand, not like years past. While serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer with my husband, we certainly miss our families and the warmth of familiar traditions, especially during the holiday season.
Being only two of the handful of foreigners living in our province, our community and counterparts were unfamiliar with the uniquely American holiday that is Thanksgiving. To spread some awareness, my husband and I taught Thanksgiving lessons at our respective schools, explaining the traditional foods and meaning of this special holiday. On Thanksgiving Day itself, it felt strange to go to work as normal, knowing our friends and family in the States were celebrating the day together. Nonetheless, we wished all of our students and school colleagues “Happy Thanksgiving!” and showed them how to make the timeless “hand turkey” with phrases of thankfulness for each finger. We felt accomplished and proud as we returned home, having felt we shared an authentic piece of our American culture with school communities.
Bradford and I knew we wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving, but sourcing a turkey proved to be impossible, since Thai people do not eat turkey. We determined a grilled pork and french fry dinner would satiate our needs, so we set off to the market to gather our meal. Little did we know, Kru Kwan, Bradford’s counterpart, had other plans for us. He had found a “real, American” turkey in the next province just for us. At around 5pm on Thanksgiving Day, he surprised us with the 15 pound freshly-killed bird (feet and head intact) in a styrofoam container usually used to transport ice for parties. Our kitchen, small and ill-equipped for such a culinary undertaking, was relinquished to Kru Kwan, his wife, and the meat cleaver, large cutting board, and transportable convection oven they brought with them.
We spent the next hour carving the turkey into manageable pieces that would fit into the tabletop oven, all the while listening and dancing to Thai and English music. More teachers from our schools stopped by to take part in our holiday celebration and to sample turkey for the first time. The turkey was cooked in small batches and turned out absolutely delicious, quite similar to chargrilled chicken. Our Thai friends and colleagues tried it without hesitation and seemed pleasantly surprised! We ate all of the turkey and lots of snacks from our local 7/11 store and closed our evening around 9pm.
We said goodbye to our Thai friends with full, grateful hearts. While the evening was far from a typical American Thanksgiving, we now have fond memories and lasting bonds with our Thai friends who have turned into family. Without them, this experience would be nearly impossible. Thankful is an understatement.
Sticky Rice 
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