This post was written from the perspective of a 30-something American woman who is now married to a British/Irish man and has been living abroad in Spain since 2014.
Thanksgiving is an interesting time of year. I personally believe it is one of the most underrated American holidays and is celebrated – if at all – too quickly and then soon forgotten for another year.
Contrary to what other blogs might tell you, I think it is okay to spend a holiday alone once in a while. I have done this a couple of times with both Thanksgiving (on the day) and Christmas. The short version of this is that you will live, but the long version is a little more complex.
Since Thanksgiving falls on a weekday, it isn’t easy to celebrate with an elaborate meal in a country that doesn’t observe. Not to mention the fact that you won’t have enough time to digest the food before bed if you dig in after 8 p.m.
One of the best things you can do when celebrating Thanksgiving abroad is to create your own traditions. As much as you will want to recreate something similar to how you celebrate the holiday in your home country, I am here to tell you that it won’t be exactly like that.
That’s perfectly okay, though!
After all, you moved abroad to create and be more open to change in your life, didn’t you? I can imagine you did but your reasons might be different from mine.
In this post, you will find all of the ways I have celebrated Thanksgiving over the last decade. There are still some life changes that I have yet to experience but towards the end of this reflective post, I will describe how I observe the holiday in the present. I hope you can find a particular way and some advice related to your current or future situation.
1. By yourself on the day
In my early years of living abroad, I was much more sensitive and prone to thinking about home and my family. It’s not to say that I don’t get homesick now and then or want to spend time with my family around this time of year, I definitely do. It’s just when you first move abroad, you are a bit more focused on how life in your new country compares to the country and culture you just left.
After you’ve spent a few years abroad, your thoughts will gravitate more toward your current life compared to your earlier years. As I’ve gotten older and I’ve experienced more things, this seems to be life’s natural progression. You look back on core memories often, but you tend to think about the early years of a different time in your life as you move through where you are today.
All this to say is that you might be like I was in my first couple of years abroad, trying to recreate a side dish that I remember having at my own family’s Thanksgiving. For me, that was my mom’s oyster stuffing that I unsuccessfully failed to make. It takes finesse and I severely lacked that in my early days abroad when it came to cooking.
However, I am no stranger to trying to recreate my family’s Thanksgiving meal. You see before I ever moved to Spain, I went away to college in a different state from where I grew up. I moved to Jacksonville, Florida to pursue a double degree in Economics and Spanish. I lived there from late 2007 to early 2014. I flew home to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family in person twice, three months after I had moved away and then four years after I had moved.
2. Pre-gaming by attempting to recreate a family favorite side just for you or to bring to a dinner
3. As a single person at friends’ houses or apartments
4. With a specific group of friends who foster the sentiment of Friendsgiving
5. Traveling to a different country or city and cooking the meal there
You could do this with a close friend or family member who comes and meets you
6. With a significant other (American or not) and friends
7. Hosting a Thanksgiving dinner in your own home as a couple with only close friends
Tips on how to spend it by yourself (or if other Americans aren’t nearby)
I don’t believe they have the same tea cups there now but they did have these for a few years. And remember, you can always do a little search either online or in one of their shops to search for new or current Zara Home tea cups.
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