My Papa always said, “No one should be alone on Thanksgiving.” For the first time, I was worried that might happen this year. Thursday was a regular work day and the vast majority of Germans I’ve spoken with don’t regularly celebrate Thanksgiving. Erlangen’s Weihnachtsmarkt is up and running, the Glühwein is flowing, and my students are already excited for Christmas.
Thankfully, I have kind colleagues who understand homesickness and wanted to ensure I would have company on Thanksgiving. They knew Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year, so they invited several colleagues and organized a proper gathering.
Despite being in Germany, having no oven in my Studentenwohnheim, and the struggles I faced trying to find ingredients at the supermarket (I’ve now learned that cornstarch is Speisestärke in German), I was determined to bake a pie for Thanksgiving. Using German ingredients (like Butterkekse instead of vanilla wafers for the crust) and a friend’s oven, I baked one of my favorites: banana cream pie.
When I arrived at the host’s house on Thursday evening, I removed my shoes and was offered slippers, or “Hausschuhe”. It felt welcoming to receive and wear them around the house, and supplying Hausschuhe for guests may be a practice I adopt in the future.
Instead of turkey, we enjoyed Raclette, which is a traditional German New Year’s meal. A Raclette is a type of small grill with removable trays on which one can pile mushrooms, pepper, bacon, onions, raclette cheese (which tastes delicious when melted), and more. I’m proud to say that my banana cream pie tasted as good as it normally does back in the States. With the language oscillating between German and English and enjoying German cuisine on an American holiday, it was an intercultural evening.
I’m very thankful for my fellow teachers whose company and hospitality made this Thanksgiving memorable. Less than a month until I’m back home to visit my family for Christmas!
No comments:
Post a Comment