Not Exactly Thanksgiving

Thursday, November 22nd was a big day for America. Not so much for France. But we Americans here in Lyon did get something. Centre Oregon (our exchange program) funded a big Thanksgiving meal for us at a very fancy restaurant called “Institut Vatel.” From the moment I walked in the door, I knew this was going to be completely unlike any Thanksgiving I’d ever had, and most likely will ever have in my life: there were attendants waiting to take our coats and purses.
There were 50 to 60 of us total; we were allowed to invite friends, host family members, etc (Ruby and I brought Julia). After schmoozing for a while, we seated ourselves at one of the fancy round tables that sat about 10 people each. We were immediately given bread and wine. Soon after, the first course followed (yes, we were served our Thanksgiving meal in courses). This was a salad that included lots of different kinds of vegetables. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I also realized that I’d never eaten salad (traditional salad) on Thanksgiving before, and everyone else around the table said the same (except for Julia, who of course, had never had a Thanksgiving before). Then it was time for the main course. Before it was served, though, the head chef brought out the turkey. A real turkey, picture perfect. He walked around the entire room with it on a platter, showing everyone. We all clapped. Besides the turkey, the main course was pretty unThanksgiving-esque. No mashed potatoes (sigh), no stuffing, no gravy, no cranberry sauce (bigger sigh). But it was still a lot of fun. We all laughed about how different everything was, and reminisced about our respective Thanksgivings at home. We also explained various aspects of Thanksgiving to the three French people at our table (Julia, and Morgan’s-a friend from the program-host parents). Morgan’s host parents were hilarious, especially the dad. He’s one of the most sarcastically dry people I’ve ever meant and seriously just doesn’t give a fuck about what he says. You really had to have been there to understand exactly what I mean, but he was pretty entertaining.
Finally it was time for desert, which included two “pies” (as well as a tray of cookies and stuff). One of the pies was this chocolate caramel thing that was verrrrry delicious. The other was a sorry attempt at pumpkin. It really didn’t taste anything like actual pumpkin pie. But, I appreciate their effort. And, I mean, I ate it of course.
All in all, it was a very different holiday than we were all used to, but I think we made the most of it. When I talked to my family later that night, I got really sad and homesick, because I missed my Thanksgiving at home. But later on, Ruby and I had a long discussion about homesickness, and decided we’re done with it. It was hard talking to everyone in the moment, but I realized that this is one Thanksgiving out of so many, and I really just need to enjoy my time in France while I’m here. So that’s what I’m going to from now on: enjoy this French life to the fullest.
And hey, even though it was so different, this Thanksgiving did share something in common with every other Thanksgiving I’ve had: I was VERY full after the meal. : )