While China has happily adopted some Western holidays (mainly Halloween and Christmas), Thanksgiving is not one they celebrate. A few of my students surprised me by knowing when the holiday was, but they nothing of the history about it (not surprisingly, most American students don’t know the true history either!). Myself and the 3 other American teachers were very eager to celebrate though, thus our one-of-a-kind Thanksgiving dinner in China.
Keep in mind; none of us have ovens, so everything we cooked had to be done in a pot/pan or the microwave. Now, there are lots of recipes out there to help you create a traditional feast, but the process was made even more difficult still thanks to a lack of supplies, or in most cases, the comprehension of what was being sold to you. So, our dinner consisted of dishes of sweet potatoes, corn, and mashed potatoes, yes, but we had to resign to turkey legs, a watery gravy-like substance, and egg tarts for dessert. Our feast also consisted of burritos, much to our delight, but the confusion of the Thanksgiving-newbies. This was many people’s first Thanksgiving dinner, including some Brits and Chinese people. A moment of satisfaction came when, after we finished eating, many people exclaimed “I can’t move, I’m too full!”. This to me was proof of a Thanksgiving well done.