Thanksgiving in Paris

Thanksgiving turkies

Thanksgiving is just an ordinary Thursday in Europe, so our Thanksgiving guests did not arrive until the end of the week. We celebrated Thanksgiving on Saturday, a beautiful and clear day, continuing what has been an exceptionally mild Autumn.

Our guests represented many nationalities.

photo by Eric

                From left to right are

• James, from Ireland, an attorney working in Luxembourg
• Emily,  our niece who teaches at an international school in London
• Anne-Marie and her husband Gerard, who is a physician from Fountainbleu, France
• Jessica
• Erica, Jessica's sister
• Julia, from Berlin,who is currently a graduate student in Nottingham, England
• Cary, an American, who works for a women's rights organization in London
• Chris, an English social worker

     What a wonderful time we had together! We talked about our work, our families, the differences between our cultures, history, politics. The conversation never lagged.

We served a traditional Thanksgiving menu with a lot of French twists:

• Turkey cooked on a rotisserie at the Woodrow Wilson open market
• Cornbread sausage stuffing made with French saucisse de porc
• Cranberry chutney
• Mashed potatoes made with beurre de Normandie
• Sweet potatoes with Marshmallows
• Brioche instead of American rolls
• Green beans with scallops and creamed mushrooms
• Pumpkin pie and tarte aux pommes
• Ladurée macaroons and chocolats
• Lots of wine and Calvados (apple liqueur)

 

After a fine meal, we set off to see the Christmas lights, crossing the Seine and walking to the Champs-Élysées. We returned home via the Champ-de-Mars, walking under the night-lit Eiffel Tower.

Arc de Triumph - top center

Eiffel Tower - lower center

"home" - lower right corner

Eiffel Tower photos by Emily

On Sunday, we reminisced over Thanksgivings past through old videos and wonderful stories of family members no longer with us. Through the magic of internet technology, we joined family members who could not get to Paris.

All too soon, the party was over, leaving us with delightful memories and lots of leftovers.