Thanksgiving is an American tradition that has been celebrated for decades. People travel the distance in order to gather around a dinning table and have dinner with their extended families. An elaborate meal that revolved around a stuffed turkey with mashed potatoes, gravy, yams, green beans, and a variety of pies. The last Thursday of November is marked on every American’s calendar as Turkey Day!
Nonetheless, that is not the case around the world.
Despite popular American belief, Thanksgivings is not celebrated around the world. The holiday, in a sense, is a foreign concept to anyone who does not live in the Americas, as it revolves around the history of the Native Americans.
As an international student studying abroad in the United States, Thanksgivings break is a confusing time. For most people, it is not a long enough holiday to go back home, however there are some people who choose to fly back to spend some a few days with their families. Generally, students either take a trip sightseeing the surrounding cities of their universities, or spend the holiday with a close friend’s family.
Being in a campus filled with international students, several students described what they did during thanksgivings.
“I flew back to Hong Kong for this thanksgivings break. My classes spaced out perfectly, I was able to spend 5 days with my family and see them after spending three months abroad. It has been a long trip and the flight was exhausting, but seeing my friends and parents was worth it. I’m not sure if I would do it again next year, but I might.”
– Christine Ahn, freshmen kinesiology major from Hong Kong.
“Flying back for 3 days did not seem like the most pleasant idea, especially considering being jetlagged and spending hours on a flight. Instead, I spent Thanksgiving break with my friend at her mother’s apartment in Beverly Hills. She is also an international student, however she has plenty of family living here in California. We went shopping for the most part, spent a day on Santa Monica Beach, and had a meal at her aunt’s house on Thanksgivings day. It was a getaway weekend, and I definitely do not regret spending it here rather than flying back.”
– Vicky Peroni, freshmen international relations and business marketing and sales major from Paraguay.
“I went to San Francisco to visit my sister, so I suppose you could say I did spend it with a part of my family. Besides touring around the comity for a while, we went to the San Francisco Botanical Gardens and then cooked a Chinese Chicken Tonic soup with Chinese vegetables and rice for a thanksgiving meal.”
– Jen Ning Quan, freshmen English and theatre major from Singapore
“I was invited to spend my first thanksgiving with my girlfriend, in Seattle. The whole family welcomed me and fed me more than I could eat. It is a calming/ happy feeling, to feel a part of the whole new experience.”
– Marlon Gil Castillo, freshmen creative writing major from the Dominican Republic
” I spent this thanksgivings break in Palm Springs with one of my close friends and my mom. I was lucky enough to have a part of my family here in California in order to celebrate thanksgivings with. Even though it is not one of our traditions, it is always nice spending time with family and being reminded to be thankful.”
– Henrik Skogseth, freshmen business major from Norway.