So it seems I wrote this, but forgot to click publish. Sorry! It's a tad epic, but well, there was a lot to cram in!
I've been living my southern dream for four months now, and they have been the best four months I could have asked for. The climate suits my soul here and I love the pace of life. Speaking of lives...I finally have one! I fully embraced the adventurous nature of this exchange and am saying "yes!" to as much as I can. There have been grape-stompings and wine tastings, vintage cars and long loud scares, backyard juke joints and the craziness of college football.
However, my first Thanksgiving was an experience I wouldn't trade for the world. It truly was a picture perfect week, just like you see in the movies. It kicked off early, a full week before T-Day itself, with the arrival of another Exchange teacher. Lynsey is based in California, but flew east to share the holidays with me. I drove over to Atlanta to collect her and the drive home was filled with gossip, laughter and country music.
The following night we hit the town, and not only painted it red, but I'm sure every other color of the rainbow too! This meant that Saturday was a very quiet day, filled with naps, good food and movies on the sofa.
Unlike most of the country, we did not have the whole week off, so Monday and Tuesday brought a load of reluctant teachers together for some professional development. It was clear that our hearts and minds had already left for a much needed vacation, but we tried our hardest to be good students. Tuesday evening, Lynsey and I returned to the airport in Atlanta to collect Morna, who joined us from Kansas. We spent the trip back to Dixie swapping stories about our respective placements, and the culture shock moments we had experienced.
I honestly cannot tell you how good it felt to sleep in the next morning! To just doze and snuggle til my body was ready to wake, rather than be jolted to life by the wail of the alarm, was a simple pleasure, but a much enjoyed one! We kicked off the day with pancakes, bacon and scrambled eggs, before hitting the stores. I had an early Christmas gift when I fitted into a skirt in Banana Republic that was three sizes smaller than the one I wore when I arrived ;-)
We were lucky enough to be invited to a family gathering that evening and we were looking forward to experiencing a real "family" Thanksgiving. The drive out to the lake was beautiful and although we did knock on the wrong door originally,we eventually found our destination. Aunt Lucie & Uncle Jonathon treated all three British incomers as though we were their own family. The welcome was truly staggering, as was the food. There were children playing, laughing, fighting, and adults chatting, refereeing and chatting up with those they hadn't seen in a while. It was exactly how I imagined Thanksgiving to be, and I know that all three of us were beyond grateful to be included in the family's time together. It made our first Thanksgiving even more special.
That night, when we made it home, we set to work preparing the vegetables for the next day. I had collected recipes from friends, colleagues and parents and we were fixing to make a true southern feast. All night I got up and down to baste the beast and by the time we surfaced the following day, he was cooked to a turn.
With the parade on the tv (you have no idea how childishly excited we were about seeing Santa!) and our best clothes at the ready, we made our final preparations for our meal. We were joined by a friend from work and the four of us ate our body weight in great food, enjoyed the company and then ate some more. We even followed tradition by curling up on the sofa to watch the ball game after lunch.
Being vaguely health conscious, we eventually dragged our stuffed to the brim asses out and took a walk around Vulcan Park. My pal MJ was kind enough to give us a fabulous driving tour of the city, showing us the sights and the lights of the Magic City. We rounded out the evening with the new Bond movie, and experiencing the Midnight Madness at a local mall.
Friday brought yet another new experience for me... choosing a real Christmas tree! Living in a third floor apartment, I had little choice but to settle on a fake tree, so you can imagine how excited I was about this wee trip. The day started with a delicious brunch with my exchange partners parents. They have a beautiful wee farm not far from Birmingham itself and we had a lot of fun playing in the woods, feeding the duckies and collecting pine cones etc, before sitting down to our food.
After the meal, we piled back into the cars to head to the tree farm. Now I'm not known for my decisive qualities, but I choose my baby real quick. We wandered up and down a few rows, but I'd seen my perfect tree early on and it didn't take me long to decide that there was no better option. I grabbed the saw Steve offered and set to work bring it down.
With the tree safely stowed in Steve's truck, we decided to explore the rest of the farm and we wandered through a cornfield and picked cotton before finally heading back into the city to decorate my tree.
Saturday saw M returning to Kansas, and L and I kept things quiet Sunday. Granted, I didn't want to go back to work Monday morning, but with the memories of our perfect holiday week behind me, it wasn't nearly as bad as the usual return after a break.
It really has been the highlight of my trip so far, but I know that there are so many more things ahead of me. Right now, I've got my sights on my trip home. It really is the only place to spend the holiday season, and though I know I'll be missing out on things here, I need to be with my family for a spell. In true movie fashion, I arrive home Christmas Eve and I am beyond excited.
Happy holidays! & enjoy the pic spam
