Thanksgiving is an american celebration that takes place on the fourth Thursday of November or the second Monday of October in Canada.
It all started as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the year's harvest.
In fact there are similar festivities in Germany, Israel and other parts of the world. Many religions have special ceremonies for the harvest season.
Thanksgiving has all the kind of a harvest celebration though in New England it happens much earlier, in late November
Tradition in the United States emerged in 1621 when a group of pilgrims from Plymouth, Massachusetts in present-day, shared a meal with the Wampanoag Indians to celebrate the autumn harvest and to thank them for teaching them cultivation and hunting techniques.
The Indians brought turkey meat, while Englishes had learned how to cook blueberries, something unknown to the natives.
This first Thanksgiving day of the story lasted three days, and it would be one of the examples of harmony between European settlers and Native Americans.
However, it was not until the Civil War, when President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving as a national holiday, which would be celebrated on the last Thursday of November.
The celebration was officially established by Congress until 1941. The tradition is to thank for all the good things you have in life and ask for blessings for your family. The typical dish is the baked turkey, which is usually accompanied by salad and a filling based of corn and sage.
The use of turkey is mainly because it’s a native species of America. They also prepare cakes and eat various fruits, mainly apples. One of the traditions of this day is that the President forgives the life of one of two turkeys who were prepared to be served at the White House Thanksgiving dinner.
In Manhattan, New York, the department store Macy's organizes a spectacular parade that attracts millions of people, including tourists and Americans to Broadway Avenue to see the huge giant balloons and witness the performances of guest artists.
During this national holiday, stores, banks and large shopping chains remain closed. The next day the traditional "Black Friday" takes place, when people leave very early from their homes to go to stores to buy everything with discounts up to 75% off and other kinds of offers.
Most people in the US celebrate this party with family gatherings in their own homes where they prepare a banquet. In many houses it’s common to offer thanks prayers.
Turkey is traditionally served with a jelly or cranberry sauce, in addition they usually serve vegetable dishes such as green beans, sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes with gravy, which is a sauce made from turkey juice. A wide variety of desserts are also served, pumpkin pie and apple pie are the most popular. The meals are served with spiced hot apple cider or sparkling apple cider or hard cider, traditionally fermented.
Everything very delicious! Nowadays around the world we have several festivals related to harvests like the Jewish Sukkot, the German Oktoberfest and of course the American Thanksgiving Day.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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