15. My Thanksgiving Story

我去參加梅西(Macy's)百貨公司主辦著名的[紐約梅西感恩節大遊行]，世界第一的呦! 我一大清早5:30起來，到第59街哥倫比亞圓環的時候已經擠的水洩不通了! 我們還是硬著頭皮找到一個駐足的好所在，看著一個個的大氣球，還有小丑、樂隊、和華麗的花車遊行，真是熱鬧極了! 看完真是累斃。接著午餐到中國城一家叫[昇輝城]的飲茶(聽說是郭富城每到紐約華阜都會來這家吃)，晚上又到另一家叫[粥之家]的餐廳吃蒜頭雞、螃蟹、鮮魚等美食，雖然和一般人認知的感恩節有所不同，但可是令我忘懷不已、備感溫暖。隔天[黑色星期五](e感恩節後次日是全美大打折的日子，故稱)我也搶便宜，在蘇活區(Soho)的Apple店買了80GB的iPod，從此之後不得安寧，愛不釋手!!

Ok, I think I've got like 5, or maybe, 10 minutes to finish my story. I don't want to drag along so this is gonna be real fast and brief.

Let me start with the famous Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, one of the most renowned event in New York. It's a world-class parade with the best (really) balloons in the world. Jimmy, Monique and I decided to have a look. We woke up at 5:30 AM and arrived at Columbus Circle at half past seven. Little did we know, the street was already packed with moms, dads and, of course, kids! (of all ages). We first lined up at Starbucks to get a fresh cup of coffee to wake up more. Another long line... Anyway, we found a nice spot on the side of Central Part, facing West 60th, and counted down for the parade to kick off.

The sun rose higher and sunlight started to reflect on the windows on the buildings in front of us. We see people wiping their windows one by one coincidently as if they were also getting ready for a better view of the parade. Pretty amazing view. It was like in the movie Rear Window(1954) when James Steward watching the little universes in square boxes. People getting up, sitting by the window, having friends over, cleaning, wondering around, standing on the balcony and the rooftop. So on and so forth. And soon, it was 9 o'clock and with a big bang, the band started marching in. The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade now officially inaugurated.

The band was amazing. They were full of energy and charged with proud and glee. The cheerleaders were also impressive. So many of them and they all look the same! (especially their smiles!) Then came the balloons. I've never seen anything flying pass by so humongous and they were breathtakingly beautiful. The colossal floating vessels were controlled by dozens of men. First was Scoopie Doo, then came Dora, Hello Kitty, Snoopy, Shrek, Picachu, Mr. Potato Head among others flying by. It was just spectacular. The crowds were cheering, the clowns were funny, the floats were fancy, and of course, I was enjoy every moment.


With all the eye-catching-spinning marching bands and balloons, the show was over. I was so pleased and tired. We walked into Central Park and sat down on the benches for a while. It was time for some chaw. Where else? --- Chinatown.

The Dim Sum at 昇輝城(Shen Hwe Chen) got us well-fed and after grocery shopping, it was time for an afternoon nap.(which I didn't have!) For dinner, we (still) dined in Chinese/Taiwanese style at 粥之家(Congee House) with crabs, garlic chicken and fish. It was my very first and non-American Thanksgiving. Although it may seem very non-traditional, it was my peculiar and very personal yet special.

If you think this is the end of the story, think again. After dinner, it was only 9PM and the night was still young, although might have seem too late for the Black Friday Early Bird line-up at Best buy for the $500 computer or flat-screen TV, we took the opportunity to treat ourselves with a movie at Loews Theater at Third and 11th. The film was The Mist(2007). Talking about celebrating humanity on Thanksgiving Day. Thanks to Stephen King, I felt much more prepared for the dog-eat-dog world.

Happy Thanksgiving!

P.S. In case you were informed, I bought a new silver iPod Classic (80GB) on Black Friday at the Apple Store in Soho. Gotta love it, man!

Wan An!

*Read the cover story from Wall Street Journal Online here.
*更多中文有關遊行的新聞請見[大紀元]、[新華網]、[中國新聞網] (為甚麼在台灣的報導這麼少?)

14. Pre-Thanksgiving Dinner

Just a quick one I guess. Last night I had a pre-Thanksgiving dinner at the International Center (where I enrolled for language courses). They were very nice to have organized a very warming, beautiful and delicious dinner for the students who registered beforehand. I mean, to me, Thanksgiving is just like in the movies: family gatherings, turkey for dinner and probably some fights involved. I've never been able to really understand what it really feels like to have a Thanksgiving dinner with real American tradition(or Canadian tradition, in some cases). I mean, last year I got invited but I couldn't go due to work! That really sucks!! Working situations in Taiwan is definitely non-westernized.

So, back to the dinner. Jimmy and I arrived there around 5PM. But the door won't be opened until 5:30. And we finally got inside, I can't believe they have decorated the cafe area into a fantastic dining banquet, with table cloth, green vines, cranberries, candles decorating the dining tables with beautiful dining ware. It felt almost like being at a wedding! So nice.

We sat down, and started to introduce ourselves. Most of us didn't know each other considering there are hundreds of members and volunteers at International Center. There were two volunteers (a teacher and a language partner), a woman from Myanmar, a Peruvian, a Chinese, a Korean and two Taiwanese(Jimmy and I). Very international enough haha.It was nice sitting next to the Peruvian and she told me many things I didn't learn about Peru. Now I really want to visit South America. We chatted while drinking wine and apple cider, then the organizers read two lovely poems, and after that the dinner was officially announced began. FOOD!

The food served for the event was sponsored by a local high school so they came serving us and taught us the meaning of sharing and good will. I really love the idea. They kids looked very happy bring their home culture to us. I guess that's when I realized of the true meaning of Thanksgiving-- be grateful and willing to share with other in praise of the love of the world. I hope I didn't put it wrong. We had turkey breast with gravy, creamy bread crumbs, macaroni, sweet potatoes, long-stem beans and a bun. It was really delicious and the atmosphere just couldn't be better. To top it off, luscious desserts were served with choices of apple pie, coconut pie and the very traditional pumpkin pie(which I didn't get!) with coffee. I really miss dessert! I mean, since I'm a backpacker here, I don't really go for the luxury of dining out, let along having desserts! This was my lucky night! (and it was all free BTW) As a result, we left with a full stomach and a warmed heart.

All and all, the Thanksgiving dinner really opened my eyes and with some exchange of words with the American folks and other international friends at the table, I felt I was the lucky ones. I mean, just by that evening, I saw like perhaps five blinded people walking on the street and I helped one crossing the street. What I'm trying to say is that we should really cherish what we have in our lucky life and share the joy and love with other while we can. Not many people can do that. And certainly there are tons of things we can do. So I praise to all volunteers and the organizers from the International Center with gratitude and a big "Thank You" on this special occasion. It was a special experience for me.

So, how are you going to spend your Thanksgiving? Feel free to share with me!

Wan An!