Thanksgiving. A yearly holiday celebrated across America. Many of my friends went home to their families; my surrogate family and I, however, decided to stay in the city for Friendsgiving.

Family traditions are an inherent part of Turkey-Day festivities and ours was no exception.

My Thanksgiving Day fittingly commenced with a considerable amount of food; some friends and I headed to the Columbia dining hall for turkey, sweet potato, and a highly decorative cake.

Feeling slightly sleepy and sick after having consumed copious amounts of turkey before midday, we headed to the parade.

The parade is a ~big deal~ in the city, many braved the cold November morning at 6 am to get a good spot; I was not one of these people. In fact, when we eventually caught the subway down to midtown the parade had ended. While this was one of my less successful endeavours in the city, the collapsing floats and people roaming the blocked off roads were still a sight to behold.

This holiday is new to me, but it had that special, if toned down, importance to it; like on your birthday, no matter how you spend it the day feels different from other, ordinary days.

So, slightly disappointed with our poor timing we went shopping- because what else are you going to do in New York when you have a day spare. We Wandered around 44th Street, looking at shop displays and buying things we didn’t need; Macy’s, the heart of the procession, donned a 46 feet turkey balloon.

While the pageantry for this holiday can feel overwhelming and strange at times, it was a spectacle in the very best sense of the word. And, as the evening drew to a close, we took an empty subway car home; feeling exhausted from a full day of food and shopping.

-Shola.