Thanksgiving, Mada Style

Holidays away from home are often a struggle, it’s difficult to sway from your routine for a holiday in a new place. So, I wasn’t expecting much for this Thanksgiving. But, the 8 MadYAGMs were together with Austin and Tanya (our country coordinators) in Antananarivo (the capital of Madagascar) last Thursday because we were just finishing up first retreat. We spent a relaxing week swimming in waterfalls, lemur hunting, eating lots of cheese and telling story. Then, we returned to Tana for the close of retreat and to celebrate an American holiday in a new place. And, it felt mostly like Thanksgiving at home. We did our best to combine all 10 of our Thanksgiving traditions into one Malagasy Thanksgiving. We began the morning with breakfast and lots of coffee. Then, the cooking began. There were appetizers of veggies, hummus and other dips, and pumpkin dip with ginger snap cookies. There were two turkeys (much smaller than the 20 pound bird I’m used to, these were ‘gasy turkeys, so not your average butterball). There was stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, mac n’ cheese, green beans, and fruit salad (with mangoes and other specifically Malagasy fruits).  Another volunteer, Kelsey, and I, spent much of the day cooking and being grateful for sharp knives, two ovens, hot water from the tap and other fancy things that Austin and Tanya have at their house. We ate outside with a wide variety of plates, silverware and fruit bowls that we gathered from around the kitchen to seat 12. The 12 included the 10 of us described earlier plus two dear Malagasy friends of the MadYAGM program, Sthela and Neilson. For Sthela, Thanksgiving was nothing new, she has celebrated in the states. But, for Neilson, it was his first Thanksgiving, so we made sure to explain each dish and make sure he got enough of each. After, there were pumpkin and chocolate pies and apple cider. In the evening I got to skype with my family celebrating their Thanksgiving in Minnesota. At, the next day I got to listen to the 2013 edition of Turkey Confidential (don’t worry, 2014 is downloading now!). The whole day was a great reminder of all the things I am thankful for around the world.

The mostly devoured appetizers.

The dinner table set with mostly plates except the one cake pan, which we decided to call the trough. And, there weren't quite enough forks so Tanya and Sthela took it for the team and ate 'gasy style with just a spoon.

Our Thanksgiving Feast!

And the turkeys!