Turkey Trots and Epic Feasts

Thanksgiving is traditionally a holiday spent in the most familiar of settings with family and old friends. This Thanksgiving, although far from familiar, was undoubtedly one of the most memorable holidays I’ve experienced so far. When you combine 16 gringos, 25+ Peruvians, hundreds of pounds of food, and a lot of cultural interchanges, you’re sure to have a Thanksgiving to remember.

The day began bright and early with a full-blown “Turkey Trot 5K Gran Marathon”. When we first discussed the possibility of a Turkey Trot, I envisioned a bunch of Americans running aimlessly around the streets of Huaraz. However, John William ran with the idea and transformed the event into an awesome event complete with a police and ambulance escort, prizes, loudspeakers, and a significant number of both Peruvian participants and fans. We arrived in Jungas proudly sporting our 5K Turkey Trot T-Shirts. After a quick carbo-load we piled in a small taxi and drove about 5 kilometers down the main road leaving from Jungas. We arrived at the starting point and several other Peruvians were already awaiting the start. Wearing spandex and running gear, they looked much more serious than our motley crew. The start of the race was marked by a large statue of the “Virgen” with snowcapped mountains decorating the skyline in the background. With the siren of the police car we all took off running, many of us still adjusting to the dramatic altitude difference. Jungas is situated at an altitude of about 3500 meters, or over 10,000 feet, so those of us living in coastal sites could feel our hearts beating faster and our lungs working harder as our body fought to adjust to the lack of oxygen. As we continued through the race we passed combis, curious farmers, lots of animals, and little children who were clearly perplexed by the mass of gringos running through the busy road to their town. When we entered the town we had an animated fan base cheering us on as we circled the plaza and crossed the finish line. In addition to our group, dozens of Peruvian adults and little children also participated in the 1^st annual Peruvian Turkey Trot. The conclusion of the race featured music, prizes, and even a little bit of dancing in the plaza.

Following our “gran marathon” we continued on to the very important task of food preparation. Cooking a Thanksgiving dinner in Peru for over 40 people without running water or many typical ingredients could have been a challenge, but every step of the preparation process was an experience. Boiling potatoes over firewood, cooking turkeys in a huge adobe oven, peeling potatoes with butter knives, crushing cloves by hand, baking pies in frying pans, adapting recipes to meet the available Peruvian ingredients; you name it, we conquered it. After an entire day of preparation we had an incredible spread of traditional American Thanksgiving dishes: Two delicious turkeys, homemade gravy, an enormous pot of garlic mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, vegetables, fruit salad, stuffing, apple pie, a spin-off of pumpkin pie, homemade whipped cream, banana pudding, and more. Each of us contributed our own expertise and willing hands to prepare a truly unique and successful Thanksgiving meal. It would have been easy for us to go to a restaurant or cook only amongst ourselves, but sharing one of the most special American traditions with a Peruvian community was a true testament to what I believe is the heart of Peace Corps. As we sat down to eat at a crowded table of Peruvians and Americans in a small town in the mountains of Peru I could help but feel overwhelmed with blessings and thanks. Despite being far from so many I love, this Thanksgiving will be a holiday I never forget.