I have been asked a couple times how we celebrate Thanksgiving in Germany. Well, the answer is we don’t. Thanksgiving is a completely American tradition. I bet there are even some Germans, or Europeans in general, that have never heard of it. So to me Thanksgiving is a rather new tradition.

I had heard about it before and even celebrated it once, so I was not a complete greenhorn. Still, every family celebrates it a little bit differently and might have some dishes that others don’t have. As I understand it, the most essential thing to have is a turkey. It is not Thanksgiving without a turkey. Along with the turkey goes the stuffing, which seems to be very essential as well. Popular side dishes include sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry jelly. For dessert pie seems to be served, mostly the classics, apple and pumpkin, optionally with whipped or ice cream.

I like the whole idea of Thanksgiving. Having another holiday that gives you a couple days off is always great. You get the chance to go home and spend some days with your family, even thought there are probably a couple people that don’t like that idea at all. I always like being home and spending time with my family. I would like having another day where everybody comes together and where the house is crowded with lots of people and it is loud and in one corner people are laughing together and in the other kids are fighting. I think it is nice when they people come together and stuff themselves with as much food as possible. That sounds like a great holiday to me.

Still, the amount of food that is prepared for this one day of the year must be enormous. Can anybody imagine how many turkeys get eaten that day alone? If you go out looking for a turkey after Thanksgiving, it is probably very hard to find one. And think of all the work that it takes, usually by the moms, to prepare the delicious meal and, let’s not forget, the cleaning up afterwards. Did anybody thank them for that?

One other part of traditional Thanksgiving seems to be Black Friday. Now there is a crazy idea. Getting up early in the morning to be at the store at 4 a.m. to get the best deals?

Don’t get me wrong, I like shopping but that is something only Americans can come up with. I don’t think Europeans would be crazy enough to do something like that and risk getting run over by the mob just to buy a new TV.

Overall, I think I can say that I enjoy the Thanksgiving tradition. It is a holiday that has family, shopping,  and good food. What more could you ask for?