IL Postcard

Happy Thanksgiving

Date: 11/22/2006

International Living Postcards-- your daily escape

Thanksgiving, 2006
All around the world

How are your IL contributors celebrating Thanksgiving this year?

John Forde, a writer in our Paris office, has been in France for a number of years and says: "We're making this more of a French-American event now, as a lot of our French friends are curious and want to experience a 'real' Thanksgiving, so we have a mix of people over. The trouble here is getting a big enough turkey--they can be expensive in Paris--but last year we asked our butcher and he even offered to roast it for us, since he has a spit-roast that runs all day, and this makes things much easier."

Janine Goben, our Honduras Editor, says: "La Ceiba has an expat restaurant offering a Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings. On Roatan, most of the diving-resort hotels, especially the all-inclusive ones like Bay Islands Beach Resort and The Inn of Last Resort, put on a turkey extravaganza. But the holiday feeling doesn't last long, especially for scuba divers, who don't want to dive the next day after over-imbibing! Last year, my husband, Ron, was here alone, so he went to the Blue Parrott restaurant for a great all-you-can-eat Thanksgiving."

Brandon Clogston, our Panama Insider, says, "I will be spending Thanksgiving with my mom and her husband (Latin America Insider Suzan Haskins and Roving Latin America Real Estate Scout Dan Prescher), in my new apartment in El Cangrejo, Panama City. We'll probably have the wine flowing, with the NFL on in the background." Suzan adds, "We'll be spending Thanksgiving with plenty of food and wine and watching a bunch of grown men dressed like gladiators trying to move a pig-skin across the lawn. And then we'll eat some more. I will try to throw in some Panamanian food…like arroz con pollo (rice and chicken with green olives in a tomato base) and sopa borracha (literally translates to 'drunken soup'), which is like a rum cake but with twice the rum…yum."

Jason Gaspero, International Living's copywriter, says, "I'll be in Dublin, Ireland, for Thanksgiving, and will do some preliminary scouting for 'The Big Six' (turkey, stuffing, potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and green beans). My girlfriend, Malin, will insist on throwing in some Swedish delicacies. That's probably one of the things I like most about Thanksgiving abroad. Not only do you get to sample some food from back home, but your friends will want to join in and add specialties from their home country."

Wherever you find yourself today, we hope you're among friends and family, sharing a very Happy Thanksgiving.

- The entire far-flung staff of International Living