I am almost hesitant to post this...restart my blog after a 3 year hiatus. What with Facebook and other social media venues, blogging seems almost passé. However, I was amused as I read back over some of my earlier posts. So, here I go again!
It should be called fate that I happen to restart this blog almost an exact 3 years after having made my last post. The last post was a humorous picture encouraging shoppers to order their Thanksgiving turkey that I took at the Hipercor (think upscale Walmart) near my house. At the time, Thanksgiving wasn't anything here in Spain. However, here I am 3 years later, on a committee to plan a Thanksgiving celebration for approximately 120 people. That IS a lot of turkey... especially in a country where the largest Tom weighs in at 8 kilos (17 lbs). Mom told me we would need approx 40 lbs (18 kilos) of turkey to feed 60 adults (the rest are kids).
The other day I walked into Hipercor to ask about ordering the turkeys and approximate cost, when I told the butcher I would need the birds for the end of the month his face lit up and he said "Ahhh!!! Para el Día de Acción de Gracias!"... I felt identified. It actually felt good that someone, not American, knew about a tradition near and dear to my heart.
Now, if I could only convince the rest of the Spaniards that Hallowe'en is not an American tradition and that we don't impose all our holidays on Spain. We just take the best of what there is from around the world (Hallowe'en, St. Patty's Day, Cinco de Mayo, and the Running of the Bulls a.k.a. San Fermín to name a few) and add our unique American touch to it, that's all! We are days away from celebrating Hallowe'en Spain style. We have had our annual NS (bilingual family fungroup) Hallowe'en party. Now it's time to carve our pumpkin!
Friday, October 28, 2011
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
American Holidays
Ok, I have been absent for a bit, but I just had to share this all with you:
One thing is to be able to buy ingredients and such to try and replicate a traditional American holiday such as Thanksgiving... another is to be marketed to directly...when there is no such celebration in Spain at all!!!
I suppose I will give it about 3-5 years and we will start to see Spanish adaptations of Thanksgiving (Día de Acción de Gracias). Afterall, they are beginning to embrace Halloween even if it isn't socially accepted in all circles... and Santa Claus (Papá Noel) has found his place on the store shelves between the Belénes (Nativity scenes) and Reyes Magos (Three Kings).
Who knows??
Thursday, August 21, 2008
A Toddler's Busy Social Life
When I was single, I needed a planner/agenda to keep my professional and social life straight.
As a married woman, I found modern technology to be helpful with a shared online calendar with DH and a PDA that could be synchronized with my agenda in my computer.
As a mother, I am about to pull the hair out of my head! I don't know how to keep it all straight. The playgroup that I started for AR is on summer hiatus, like the rest of Spain. However, we have joined another one which meets twice weekly during the summer. Our playgroup will enter full swing in September with a rhythm and music class planned as well as a repeat visit to Burrolandia. There are discussions about starting dance classes in English as well. Anything to get AR communicating as much as possible in English.
Apart from the playgroups we have the playdates and the birthday parties and trips to Safari Madrid. Forget Mommy's social life. She is too busy keeping AR's social life under control.
In addition to his social life, he has a busy traveling life as well. In getting ready for a trip to Russia, we've had to renew his Spanish passport...already!! And the boy has been around with at least 3 trips to the USA under his belt in his young life. Now Russia... Ah, the life of an expat's child. And that isn't counting the number of kilometers he has logged in various road trips with Mommy and Papá ... a couple of times to Soria, to Valencia, Segovia, Toledo, around Madrid Community, and soon to the Sierra de Francia. We will be heading there for a long weekend and it's my job to plan and organize the trip. It will be AR's first tent camping adventure!
We will come back just in time to celebrate the annual festivities of San Sebastián de los Reyes. This will be AR's second time at these encierros. It has been an annual event that my father-in-law loves to go to. We can't let him down this year!!
As a married woman, I found modern technology to be helpful with a shared online calendar with DH and a PDA that could be synchronized with my agenda in my computer.
As a mother, I am about to pull the hair out of my head! I don't know how to keep it all straight. The playgroup that I started for AR is on summer hiatus, like the rest of Spain. However, we have joined another one which meets twice weekly during the summer. Our playgroup will enter full swing in September with a rhythm and music class planned as well as a repeat visit to Burrolandia. There are discussions about starting dance classes in English as well. Anything to get AR communicating as much as possible in English.
Apart from the playgroups we have the playdates and the birthday parties and trips to Safari Madrid. Forget Mommy's social life. She is too busy keeping AR's social life under control.
In addition to his social life, he has a busy traveling life as well. In getting ready for a trip to Russia, we've had to renew his Spanish passport...already!! And the boy has been around with at least 3 trips to the USA under his belt in his young life. Now Russia... Ah, the life of an expat's child. And that isn't counting the number of kilometers he has logged in various road trips with Mommy and Papá ... a couple of times to Soria, to Valencia, Segovia, Toledo, around Madrid Community, and soon to the Sierra de Francia. We will be heading there for a long weekend and it's my job to plan and organize the trip. It will be AR's first tent camping adventure!
We will come back just in time to celebrate the annual festivities of San Sebastián de los Reyes. This will be AR's second time at these encierros. It has been an annual event that my father-in-law loves to go to. We can't let him down this year!!
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