The weather was awful. About 39 degrees and misty. I forgot my black dress coat in the states, so a long sweater would have to do. Can you say FREEZE?
We arrived and were greeted by the Mayor of Fegersheim. He spoke English for my benefit. While the dedication speech was in French, I was able to understand a large portion of the content. They were honoring the fallen soldiers and thanking the American and Moroccan soldiers for their part in the liberation of the villages on November 25, 1944. The speech was over and now it was time to walk over to the next location. Imagine our surprise when we were actually participants in the parade!
After the 15 minute walk we arrived at the old hospital, now a restaurant, where General LeClerc made the official announcement of the liberation.
We heard a Frenchman speak of his memories from that special day 70 years ago. Benoît Meyer was then 14, now 84 and the crowd loved him. (His speech can be found on-line)
They presented all of the military veterans a commemorative medal and then it was off to the reception. I asked if it were possible to photograph one of the medals….the mayor gave us one as a memento!
Again, we were surprised to find that we would ride in the parade (in the Mayor's car) to the ending point of the parade.
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| They had to push start our car! |
It was so moving to watch the American military vehicles drive down the French streets announcing that freedom had come….just as they did 70 years ago in 1944. I wish that I would've paid more attention in history class! Michael, I wish you could've been here this weekend….we thought of you and your love of history.
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| Moroccan soldiers |
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| Our car in the parade |
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| American Navy |
Next up was Thanksgiving. We planned to share our feast with 3 other couples. Shopping for traditional Thanksgiving food in Europe can prove difficult. I spent 3 days in two countries (Germany and France) looking for sweet potatoes. You can't buy them in a can here, so I was looking in the produce section. Finally, after visiting 4 stores, I found them. Imported from Israel. Cranberries can also be difficult to find….those I scored in Germany. You can't find "stuffing/dressing" here, so I made my own from scratch. Pumpkin pie? Have to either bring the pumpkin with you from the states or purchase it from "My American Marketplace". (Of course you could use fresh pumpkin, but I am certainly not that dedicated)
Turkeys can be found in France in mid to late December. It's considered a Christmas dish. I had ordered my turkey from the butcher in early November so I was set. Or at least I thought. I ventured to the market with my little wheelie cart early Wednesday morning. I knew something was wrong when my butcher, Cristine, started shaking her head when I approached.
She gave me a 20 second explanation in French. All I caught was "problem with my order" and "tomorrow by car". I initially thought she was telling me that I would have to come and pick up my turkey at her shop. I explained that I wouldn't have the car until 7PM. She looked exasperated and I was certainly NOT happy. Fortunately, another customer happened along and Cristine knew that she spoke English. A translator….praise God.
"Sylvie", my new best friend, is French and has a husband (Anesthesiologist) who is working in Quebec. She explained to me that Cristine's turkey supplier was not able to deliver my turkey on time. It could be delivered (by car….I had that part right) to my apartment by 10 AM on Thanksgiving day. WHAT?? If you've never prepared a fresh turkey, you need to brine it. That process takes at least 12 hours.
Sylvie understood my dilemma and explained it to Cristine. Cristine made 2 calls to other "suppliers" but was unable to find a turkey. I left the market with a "promise" of a bird being delivered to my apartment by 10 AM the next day. At least I hadn't PAID for the turkey yet. She told me to pay the next time I came to the market….
What to do?? I had 6 people coming to my house for turkey. I left David a message. I needed him home early so that I could scour Germany for a frozen turkey. (You can't find them in France) I texted one of the guests, Katie, and asked if she had the car….nope. I sent a text to the other guests to see if they had their car. SCORE! Brittney and Allyson were my heroes. They went to Germany and picked up two birds. Why 2? Because they only weighed 3kg each. That's only about 6 lbs each.
Did I mention that in the middle of this fiasco I had already planned to meet an out of town guest? My California friend, Tammy, had let me know that HER Colorado friend, Jill, would be coming through Strasbourg sometime Thanksgiving week. I had arranged to meet Jill at 1:30 to show her around the city. I couldn't have changed things if I wanted to because I didn't have her cell number. So, at 1:30, while I had no turkeys, I was meeting a new friend. We had a great afternoon, so I was most happy that I did.
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| Taking Jill around Petite France |
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| Had to take her by Tammy's favorite bakery. |
Allyson and Brittney dropped off the birds just as I was getting ready to take Jill to her meeting point.
Jill was in Europe on a boat trip with her mom. The leader of her trip gave her the meeting spot and told her it would be about a 30 minute walk. Yeah, right. I took Jill on the tram and it took us 30 minutes! Of course, we got off one stop too early and had to walk quite a way, but we made it just in time! Thanks for your visit Jill!! Can't wait to do the Amalfi coast next summer to celebrate your and Tam's 50th birthdays!
Back to Thanksgiving. Both birds were defrosted. I had already prepared my brine, so in they went and they spent the evening in the fridge. Early Thanksgiving morning I took them out to "flip them". This is what I found. It made me laugh, so I had to snap a photo.
10:00 came and went, so did 10:30 and 11:00. No turkey delivery. I texted my husband to tell him to call and cancel the turkey. He ignored my text. At 11:40 my door buzzed. Yep, my turkey had arrived. It was almost 11 lbs….how the heck was I going to store it in my "mini fridge" with all the other food? To make room, I had to literally take out all of the drinks and put them outside the kitchen window in our rain gutter.
A funny surprise when I logged onto FB during my short break at midday. I spotted this post:
A toutes nos clientes et tous nos clients américains nous souhaitons un bon Thanksgiving et plus
particulièrement à Teresa et Dave
! Que cette journée vous soit très belle!
Yes, we were wished a happy Thanksgiving from our favorite Tapas restaurant. I think that we may go there a little too often!
The rest of the day went like clock work. I was super happy that both turkeys would fit not only in the roasting pan, but also in my small oven.
Our guests arrived laden with a lot of food. So much food, that we had to do the meal buffet style.
We spent the evening laughing and eating and laughing some more.
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| L to R Allyson and Tony Dobbins, David and I, Kevin and Katie Noone, Matt and Brittney Howard |
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| Poor kid….his dad put this sticker on him…he wandered around the event and made people smile.
What happened to that 11lb turkey? We roasted it on Saturday evening and took it to church for our potluck dinner. (Did I mention that I haven't actually PAID for that turkey yet?) That was 3 turkey dinners in 4 days….I don't think I can eat turkey again for a month.
Hope that my update on the last week or so wasn't too boring. My bff Lisa arrives on Saturday. We head to Marrakech on Monday and I'm certain I will have some funny stories to share with you when we get back.
Enjoy your blessings and be thankful :)
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