Rainforest Field Trip - Thanksgiving in the Tropics

Thanksgiving is of course only a holiday in the USA. Here in Costa Rica at the field station they have begun putting up Christmas decorations and shops have decorations and gifts prominently displayed, so the Christmas calendar creep is not just a North American thing. Some of our students have never been away from home on a major holiday before, and the field station in deference to all the gringos makes us a pretty fancy Thanksgiving dinner. It was a hot sunny day this morning, now cooled off by some afternoon downpours; at home a wintery mix is falling, and nothing can explain this to our tropical hosts. How could it actually be that cold? The Phactor, thinking well ahead, brought cranberry jelly/sauce, a true North American contribution to the traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Amusingly, the Costa Ricans are as suspicious of the cranberry sauce as our students are of new Costa Rican foods. Unfortunately some things just don't translate very well; some how salsa de pavo just doesn't seem the same as gravy, but what else are you going to call it? And what will the Phactor miss the most? Well, that's so easy it isn't even a contest; Mrs. Phactor is a world class pie maker and the most difficult choice you will ever have is pumpkin, apple, or pecan? Readers, care to chime in?