Thanksgiving, Aussie Style

There are a surprising number of Americans in our ward here, so when we were invited to eat Thanksgiving at one of their homes, we jumped at the chance. Thanksgiving is such a very American holiday (even though the Canadians apparently have their own version); it’s my favorite one, so I was excited to be able to have a real one. Well, as real as you can get in a country that not only doesn’t celebrate it, but where the very foods that you eat are from the States and based on a fall harvest. IE – no pumpkins (here, “pumpkins” are actual squash), puny and pricey turkeys, and no allspice. Weird. And worst of all, everyone worked full days and went to school. It really did not feel like Thanksgiving.

Orange rolls are goooooood.

Luckily, the host family, the Stewarts, throw a good shindig and made the whole thing feel just like home. Granted, the turkey was a little smaller than usual (and still touched the oven in three different spots – the ovens here are *tiny*) and Ben’s pumpkin pies were a little sad (pumpkin taken from Mandy’s Halloween jack-o-lantern), but I brought eight dozen or so orange rolls, which was all I needed for a happy meal.

The spread.

The setting.

The tiny ovens. Thank goodness there were two.

The turkey (and Bruce).

The company was good, the food was delicious, and the ocean view from the balcony while we ate wasn’t too shabby, either. Juliana (the youngest Stewart – she’s 16) chose a holiday-appropriate movie for the kids (“Pocahontas”), but they had much more fun running around with grocery bags on their heads and making a general ruckus. A good time was had by all, and we left with overly-full stomachs, just like anyone should after a good Thanksgiving meal.