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Thanksgiving, Moscow Style

December 8th, 2012 kaolse14

This was my first Thanksgiving spent without family. There was no homemade pumpkin pie; no “turkey bowl” with the brothers; no competing with my older brother for the last drop of apple cider; no Christmas music at midnight or plans on how to outdo ourselves this holiday season with bigger, better Christmas decorations.

My American friends and I came to a conclusion: just because we are 4,500 miles away from the American mainland does not mean that we cannot attempt to recreate this holiday celebration in Moscow! Furthermore, we concluded that this was a great opportunity to share an American tradition with Russians and other international students. Here’s what happened:

It’s 5pm. There are 5 Americans, 4 Russians, and 1 Swede crammed into a kitchen in our friend’s apartment. The tasks are divided among the visitors. By that, I mean that the Americans take charge of the turkey and the stuffing, with the help of the Swede, while the Russians are invited to sit back, relax, and watch the comedy unfold.

I would have liked to report that everything went smoothly, that everything was ready on time, and that we all shared a delicious Thanksgiving dinner together that evening. But reality has a way of bypassing expectations. A crisis of faith was averted when we skyped one of the mothers back in the U.S., showed her the turkey via video chat, and said, “Okay, what do we do?” Thankfully, she took us through the process step-by-step while the Russian host mother was heard in the background yelling, “Translate! Translate what she is saying!” If it wasn’t for that video chat, the Russian host mother would have covered the turkey with mayonnaise and then baked it. Thankfully, this mayonnaise-covered nightmare was not on the menu that evening.

As you can guess, the turkey was not ready on time. Instead, we enjoyed stuffing, deviled eggs, microwaved lasagna, and Kristen’s delicious homemade grilled cheese. The Thanksgiving was a little unorthodox, but we laughed about the situation and had a great time preparing a Thanksgiving meal. The following day, we enjoyed a meal of delicious turkey and stuffing on our 19-hour train journey to Volgograd.

I can honestly say that I enjoyed the Thanksgiving experience with Russians and other international students. The entire situation was comical, and I am glad that we all came together to celebrate Thanksgiving. I also hope that, despite the few bumps on the road, our Russian and Swedish friends learned about American culture through the lens of the Thanksgiving holiday. Nevertheless, nothing replaces a Thanksgiving with family. So to all those who have the opportunity to spend the holidays with family, I say: enjoy it. Take it from me when I say that you really learn to appreciate the holidays with family when you spend the holidays away from family for the first time.

Hint: If you find yourself in Moscow during Thanksgiving, the restaurant Starlight Diner, located just off of Tverskaya Street, has a special, albeit pricey, Thanksgiving dinner with turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. You can eat there, or you can take the food to go and bring it back home for a home-like Thanksgiving dinner! Of course, if you do that, you will miss out on all the fun described above.    🙂

One Response to “Thanksgiving, Moscow Style”

  1. Nick says:

    Good job guys, way to make due! Enjoy the holiday season, Ruskie style. Looks like you’ll have a white Xmas. Keep up the good work, we’re proud of you. Nick and Gin xoxoxo

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