Pavo

So everyone that has ever known me will certainly laugh after I share my big news: I am hosting Thanksgiving dinner at my house. Yes. Rebekah Who Does Not Cook. Rebekah Who Can't Turn the Oven On. Rebekah Who Rarely Hosts Anything Because When One Hosts, One Has to Clean the House First.
But! My time in Costa Rica is all about trying new things, and my house is pretty and my oven is large, so it makes sense to have Thanksgiving here. I think it will primarily be a potluck, so I don't have to cook everything, but I do plan on making a turkey and the mashed potatos. And maybe some snacky things to start.
Unfortunatly, there is no turkey to be had. I went to the grocery store yesterday and asked for "pavo" (turkey) and the meat man told me no. The expression his face implied that I was one of many gringos who had come in asking for a turkey. Ticos must find this time of year very funny...when all the gringo folks start running around looking for turkeys and buying up all the potatos. And look for pumpkins. There aren't any pumpkins, but they do sell a kind of squash that might taste sort of like pumpkin. Heather and Jonathan are going to attempt to make pumpkin pie.
There are also no cranberries, of course, so I'm thinking we're going to need some sort of cranberry stand-in. Perhaps guava jelly? Or some sort of fruit salad with pineapple and mango? Not your typical Thanksgiving, but hey, we live in the tropics. We've got lots of mango and pineapple and bananna and other tropical fruits, not a lot of cranberry.
But there are potatos and green beans and some sort of yam type thing...so we'll make do! Perhaps we'll throw in some Gallo Pinto (rice and beans) to make it a Costa Rican Thanksgiving. And make some picadillo with chayote and picibayos.
No se la palabra para "Thanksgiving" in Espanol...pero, creo que "La Fiesta de el Gracias" esta bien.