Thanksgiving Wrap-Up

If you happened to go shopping at Macy's on Black Friday, you would have probably noticed a few things that told you Thanksgiving is unequivocally over:

• The animated Christmas display in their store windows. However, the perpetual crowd that stands in front of the display makes it understandable if you bypassed the whole thing altogether.
• The lights adorning Macy’s main entrance. But you are in New York and New Yorkers do walk with a purpose – who has the time to be looking around?
• The Christmas trees scattered every few feet inside the store. But as shopping is such an extreme sport, it is perfectly excusable if you were so engrossed in your shopping that you didn’t notice them.

Even if you were at Macy's and missed all of the above signs, there really is no excuse for not noticing that the Holiday season is upon us: there is holiday music galore on the radio; the Salvation Army is showcasing their latent bell-ringing talents around major landmarks in Manhattan; and the UNICEF snowflake is back up on its perch on 57^th and 5^th! You can’t help but notice these festivities everywhere you look.

            But before we get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, let’s recap our Thanksgiving celebrations. This year, 125 students were able to experience an authentic Thanksgiving with American host families in and around New York - spanning 4 states. Some spent the day celebrating the holiday and some spent the entire 4 day weekend with their hosts. Besides meeting new people, learning about Thanksgiving traditions, and having amazing dinners, some of the students also had the opportunity to travel a bit with their host families. Take a look at what some of the student’s did over their Thanksgiving weekends!

Learning to play Apples to Apples.

“Today was wonderful. The students are great - we want them back, anytime! This has been the very best, and important, Thanksgiving I've ever had.”  ~Host in Westchester County, NY

At the Choo Choo Barn in Strasburg, PA.

“I am so impressed by my host family, they are so generous! They are the best people who I have met in U.S.A. If I didn't attend this program, I am sure I would thanksgiving day without any meaning. It was great chance in my life time!”  ~Song Yang, Student from South Korea

Having Thanksgiving dinner!

“We had a wonderful weekend. Lots of fun and special memories. One Chinese student shared that this was her first time out of NYC in the year she has lived there.  She had been depressed and lonely-  ready to go back home to China. She said that she experienced love here during the weekend that she hadn't seen since arrival in the US.  She was encouraged and able to keep going. I sat in silence with tears in my eyes. That is the reason we do what we do!”  ~Host in Lancaster, PA

  

At Hershey Park in Hershey, PA.

“My dinner and thanksgiving was awesome. Surprisingly there were lots of topics to discuss and the food was great and the hosts were hospitable in every way. They made me feel quite at home and I had a great time.”  

~Naurin Ramay, Pakistan

At the Bird-in-Hand Farmers Market in Lancaster, PA.

“From this, I knew more American customs from the Thanksgiving holiday - not from books.  Their devotion deeply affected me.  Several get-together activities were full of fun.  This program is beneficial to people coexisting peacefully.” ~Jenny Hua Liu, Student from China

Browsing the shops in Amish Country.

If you have any stories of your Thanksgiving experience that you’d like to share, we’d love to hear about it!
  
This post was researched and written by One To World intern, Jessica Zhang.