Thanksgiving in France
Although I still had school on Thursday, I am very thankful that I was still able to celebrate my favorite holiday of the year with my students and my host family! With the holiday, I am also reminded of how blessed I am to have this incredible opportunity and family and friends who support me through all that life brings! If you are reading this, thank YOU for being a part of my life and supporting my learning and travels!
In school, I taught a history/ art lesson on Thanksgiving that my students were fascinated by! They were so excited to learn about Thanksgiving... maybe too excited at times, but that is ok because they truly did take away something from the experience! They each made their own "dinde" (turkey) with their hand and they wrote "Je dis merci pour..." and 5 things that they are thankful for on each finger. I do have to say that they turned out pretty nice, even though they had to be a little rushed for some students who enjoy talking a lot. This lesson definitely did challenge my classroom management skills with all of their excitement, but it has also made me reflective on how I can respect the traditional school structure and incorporate engaging lessons as well.
On Saturday evening, my mom's cousin, Beth, organized a fantastic traditional American Thanksgiving dinner with 2 turkeys, sweet potatoes, stuffing, cornbread, cranberries, and delicious pies! The dinner was hosted at my host family's home and there ended up being 21 people (mostly neighbors or other Americans) so it felt just like home with great company! My host parents were astounded by the fact that there were "deux dindes" (two turkeys) and four desserts, but Beth explained to them that the goal of Thanksgiving is to have leftovers and eat turkey all week. Although this was a brand new experience for them, they seemed to thoroughly enjoy it and they I enjoyed sharing our traditions and fully embracing being an American for an evening!
On Sunday, I met up with one of my great friends from summer camp in France near Bordeaux this summer, Folding Chair. She is a student at UCLA and is studying abroad in Lyon this semester, but was in Paris for the weekend, so I enjoyed meeting up with her for the afternoon! We still call each other by our camp names because that is how we know each other best! We had bruch at a restaurant called "Breakfast in America" because it was a restaurant that Folding Chair went to as a child when she lived in Paris, so it brought back positive memories for her. Even though I absolutely LOVE the food here, I do have to admit that it was nice to endulge in some American food this weekend with Thanksgiving and real pancakes! After a filling brunch, we wandered around le Marais and by Notre Dame Cathedral, which was beautiful even with a little rain!
À la prochaine!