Our Second Thanksgiving in Argentina: Americans and Argentines Together

Thanksgiving isn’t observed in Argentina, but we didn’t care. We’re Americans, so we marked the occasion anyway for the second year in a row. Since we couldn’t do it on the actual day, we got together a bit early to fit everyone’s schedules.

One big difference from last year was that we finally had people to invite and share it with. It was also our first house party in Argentina, which made it all the more interesting. We had two fellow American expats, Sarah-Claire and Brian, along with two Argentine guests, Rosalia and Peque, making it a small but meaningful gathering.

My spouse and I have a deeper appreciation for the hard work it takes to make a Thanksgiving dinner party a success, especially while living abroad.

In lieu of turkey (which we couldn't find at the market), we made chicken. We also made mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, stuffing, and two different types of salad. Well, actually, I should say that Zach did most of the work. He's the chef in the family and he's super talented. I concentrated on the house cleaning. When I was done, I helped Zach out with as much of the prep work as I could. Our friends were kind enough to bring cornbread and provide the drinks for us.  

The first thing we did was set up the appetizers which consisted of olives, cheese cubes, salami, Doritos, and sliced bread with pesto dip.  

Zach and I wanted to have the food prepped by 4 p.m., but nothing ever goes as planned for the holidays, especially in Argentina. Fortunately, our friends were willing to pitch in and peel potatoes, cut tomatoes, and ice the cake. 

God! She's cheap! Just kidding! She's cool!

We ate around 5:30 p.m. Fortunately, everyone liked the taste of the food. We were really nervous about that. I tried making sure that everyone had enough to drink and had enough ice in their cups. We all spent a couple of hours getting to know each other better while we ate. We learned a few things about Argentine culture in comparison to U.S. culture from Rosalia and our other Argentine friend, Peque.

Afterwards, we served dessert, which consisted of a chocolate cake, sweet potato pie, apple pie, and an assortment of roasted nuts, chocolate covered raisins, and chocolate covered nuts. 

Before everyone arrived, our biggest fear had been that we wouldn't have enough food. I never thought there would be leftovers, but that was a relief. It's always better to have extra than not enough. At least we know that everyone went home happy and on a full stomach. 

Being so far from home has been tougher on me than on my husband, but this dinner, this precious moment in time, was beautiful and priceless to me. We had a fantastic meal and an amazing group of people to share it with. Our friends became our family that night. I don't think I could have asked for a better Thanksgiving in my life.  

So what am I most grateful for? I'm thankful: 

• For the amazing new friends we've made here in Argentina, Sarah-Claire, Peque, Rosalia, Brian, Victoria, Kristen, Bill, Wendy, Andres, Belen (some of whom were not present here)
• For my parents, who provided us with so much in order to survive here
• For our friends back home, Amber, Joey, Stephanie, Tom, Cathy, Ashley, Rose, Drew, and anyone else I may have forgotten to mention
• For our family in New York, Zacsi, Roy, Sam, and Chewy
• For the opportunity to work as a freelance writer thanks to an Aussie expat named Ben, so I can earn some cash until I can land a more permanent job.
• To Argentina for providing us with free healthcare
• For our health
• For Zach, my husband, best friend, companion, and the love of my life 

I hope everyone had an amazing Thanksgiving. Wishing all of you the very best!

A Whovian Afternoon in Córdoba: Celebrating 50 Years of Doctor Who

On November 23rd, my spouse, my friends, and I had a date with one of the most famous time-travelers in television history. I’m talking about Doctor Who, of course! 

Fans worldwide celebrated the broadcast of the 50th anniversary special. When I heard that the special would be shown in 3D in theaters around the world, I hoped, but never expected that they would show it in theaters in Cordoba City. Fortunately, they did! 

Our fellow expat friend, Sarah-Claire, who previously joined us for Zombie Walk 2013, is also a Whovian and joined us in the theater. She didn't come alone though. She brought her Argentine friend Rosalia who is also a Whovian.

While talking to Rosalia, I learned that they held the country's first Doctor Who Convention in Buenos Aires recently, but we couldn't go. Let's hope it's a hit so that they do it again next year. Maybe then the hubs and I can go. 

A cute fan dressed up as Doctor Who

The weird thing is that I thought the only Whovians at the theater were going to be the hubs, Sarah-Claire and Rosalia. It turns out that Cordoba City also has a modest number of Doctor Who followers. They even have a group on Facebook called Whovian Cordobeses. There are currently about 49 members, but that number is bound to grow. 

After the movie, other fans invited us to a nearby park. We sat in a circle, introduced ourselves, and talked about Doctor Who for over an hour. Later, we moved to an outdoor restaurant and kept the conversation going.

Now, I’ll admit that sitting on the ground in a park is not my cup of tea. Dirt, fleas, ants, dog crap… forget it. I hate it. But Argentines will find any excuse to sit in a park or plaza and socialize. Despite my hesitation, it turned out to be a great way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who, and I hope we all get together again soon.

Zombies Take Over Córdoba, Argentina

At 4:00 p.m. on November 9th, 2013, the dead started rising in Cordoba City, Argentina. Is the end of the world really upon us? No. It's just Zombie Walk Cordoba 2013!

Now before I continue, I want to point out that all the images you see are of people dressing up as zombies. Nobody was hurt in these images nor are they real-life zombies. It's all fake for fun! Okay?

Every year, Cordobeses of all ages come to Plaza San Martin dressed up as the living dead or as zombie hunters, like the Umbrella Corporation troops from Resident Evil.  

This was our first year attending the event as spectators and it was truly an interesting experience. Even our fellow expat friend, Sarah-Claire, joined in on the fun. 

A horde consisting of zombies and human survivors walked through the streets of downtown Cordoba City, amusing locals and tourists in areas like El Paseo de Buen Pastor (the cultural center that used to be a women's prison), and the shopping center Patio Olmos. 

 

 

 

Zombie Superman

This event was a lot of fun and helped distract us from the stress we've endured over the past several months abroad. I don't know if we'll come back again next year mostly because it was super crowded and I don't do well with crowds. But it was an unforgettable experience just the same. 

Check out the video footage of the zombie walk. Feel free to praise my video editing skills. And remember... you can click on any of the photos in the entry to enlarge the image.