Our Indian Thanksgiving

        
     Once Thanksgiving time came around we decided to be proactive in organizing our own Thanksgiving dinner instead of moping around and wishing we were home. We decided to have a dinner on Saturday, since Thursday most of us had to work a full day.  On Friday we went out and bought as many ingredients as we could to make our favorite traditional dishes. Unfortunately, a lot of the essentials are not to be found in India and we do not have an oven in the apartment, but we were very creative and inventive with the recipes. We woke up Saturday morning and began preparing and cooking. On the menu: stuffing, green bean casserole (with Indian crunchies on top), carrot and yam soufflé (the sweet potatoes were mis-labeled, and we could not find brown sugar, but it actually came out very tasty), roasted beets with goat cheese, sautéed green beans and scallions, garlic mashed potatoes, corn pudding, canned corn and peas, deviled eggs, and pumpkin pie! Everything was delicious and I was so impressed that it all came together so well given our limited resources. Not only that, but we made enough to feed 22 people, since we invited the Israeli group, and have leftovers! Since turkey is not commonly found in India, the one place nearby that sells it sold out on Thursday to all the other expats for Thanksgiving. Luckily, the same place also prepares roasted chicken and they kindly roasted ours fresh that day, seasoned “Thanksgiving style.” It was actually quite delicious. We made a great chicken soup afterwards, too!

            The whole evening was so nice. We did everything you’re supposed to do on Thanksgiving…eat, drink, laugh, celebrate, and relax. We even decorated the table festively. For many of the Israelis it was their first Thanksgiving celebration, so they were very excited to have the opportunity to celebrate with us. Although I felt sad and really missed being with my family and friends this weekend, I felt very thankful at the same time to be in this amazing country with great people. I felt thankful that I am healthy and safe and doing exactly what I want to be doing. I also felt even more appreciative for everything and everyone back home. My time here has reinforced the importance of not taking anything for granted and really be thankful for all that I have. I may have not been able to eat exactly the dishes I grew up eating, watch football on TV in front of the fireplace, or sit around the table with my family…but I had a unique and wonderful experience that I will never forget.