First was our anniversary. You might be saying "Wait - they've already celebrated their anniversary! They spent time at beaches on both the east AND the west coast of Africa - isn't that enough??" Well, according to Wendy (and probably to all wives!), one must recognize the actual day of the anniversary, no matter what else one has already done to celebrate. So, for our anniversary, we got all spiffed up (Wendy in a dress given to her by one of her patients and Eric in his standard button down shirt), we borrowed a car from one of our fellow missionaries, and we went to the new restaraunt in town. The menu turned out to be pretty much the same - chicken, fish, or omeletes, with the choice of fries, plantains, rice, and spaghetti. Other types of meat were also on the menu (beef, porcupine, antelope), but since it was our first time at the restaurant, we played it safe and ordered chicken.
But the perks at this place included - table cloths, air conditioning, peanuts served as an appetizer (which was much appreciated since we were both hungry), hot food, catsup for the fries, and the ability to order soft drinks (instead of having to bring your own). Then, in true American style, we ate in less than an hour, paid the bill, left a "large" tip - about $2 (to the delight of the store owner, since it's not customary to leave tips here) and then went home to watch a movie. Quite a nice evening. :)
Then comes Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving isn't celebrated here in Gabon, but as a small way to recognize the day, we had canned turkey and stove top stuffing in a caserole along with mashed potatoes and gravy and cornbread muffins (quite good), and we watched A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Then on Friday, most of the missionaries got together for a pot luck, and we had turkey and all the fixings (including three different types of pumpkin dessert - but Eric's favorite was the pecan pie bars!) We then hung out and just enjoyed each other's company. We even went Turkey carolling to a couple houses of missionaries that weren't able to come to the meal! Someone had also taped a football game, but we never got around to watching it. Oh well - watching anything other than Nebraska football on the day after Thanksgiving would just be a disappointment.
And what do most American's do the weekend of Thanksgiving? Well, ok, they shop, but here in the rainforest, there's not much shopping to do (and if you get to the store at 5:00 am, all you're going to get is a few funny looks). But Americans also put up their Christmas decorations!. So on Saturday, with Amy Grant singing Christmas carols in the background, we put up the small Christmas tree and lights that we brought.
It's kind of weird celebrating Thanksgiving and getting ready for Christmas in the heat of the rainforest and being away from family, but we're doing the best we can to get in the spirit of the season! Happy Thanksgiving!!
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