Halloween came and went without much fuss - I think everyone was tired from midterms and no one was interested in hosting (or in our case able to host - our apartment is quite small) 17+ people. We wanted to do something that night though so we had a small get-together with a few friends. We found caramel vodka at the supermarket which we mixed with an apple soda called Poms to get a caramel apple mixed drink, and we also made actual caramel apples (props to Anna for her patience with the caramel) and baked brownies! The original intent was to watch Hocus Pocus but we had technical issues - we still shared lots of good conversation though, and a fun time was had by all.
Of course, Thanksgiving is the bigger of the two holidays but originally we were scheduled to have class on that Thursday so when/where we would celebrate was unclear. Thankfully earlier this week Chase (our resident director) cancelled classes at the center so that we could get together at his house and celebrate in the afternoon like we did for Eid al-Adha. He said he would take care of the turkey if everyone else also contributed a dish. I decided to buy a couple of tubs of ice cream and make homemade whipped cream for the pies that others made; Anna went all out and made gravy, homemade rolls, green bean casserole, and corn chowder - needless to say our apartment sure smelled like Thanksgiving!
I invited my speaking partner Loubna to the party at Chase's house since she has been so gracious in teaching me about Islamic holidays and sharing Moroccan traditions with me. Before we went over, though, I finally showed her our apartment (she hadn't seen it yet since we mostly meet on the other side of town) and even though things were a little hectic with all the Thanksgiving meal prep she said she liked it! Moroccans always seem really impressed that we cook and clean on our own. Then we walked to Chase's house with the pie toppings and the chowder, where a fantastic meal was assembled - we had everything from the traditional mashed potatoes and stuffing to artichoke bread and a stuffed pumpkin! We got pictures with the cooked turkey and other friends, and tried to eat a little of everything. The ice cream ended up being a big hit - the Moroccans and Egyptians were scooping it into cups and eating it without the pies!
Loubna kept thanking me for including her, but she's like my sister and all I wanted was to spend Thanksgiving with family - it was only natural to invite her! Thanks also to my Flagship family - teachers, students, and staff - for a great holiday away from home!