4th of July Festivities

For some reason this year I was feeling more patriotic for the 4th of July than I ever have in the past. I'm not sure if it was being abroad, serving in the Peace Corps or a combination of the two. On the 3rd I was feeling a bit down and depressed about not being home for the 4th and then started thinking about how many events and holidays I will miss out on over the next two years. So I decided instead of moping around and being a downer I would celebrate the holiday to the best of my abilities and share it with my friends and neighbors here in Thailand. 

Immediately after work on the 3rd I took my roundtrip 20k bike ride to the store to buy all the supplies I would need for my 4th of July feast. Unfortunately it rained the whole ride back. When I got home word had spread around the neighborhood that I was throwing a party the next day and I started to get worried that maybe I hadn't bought enough food. I had to work all day on the fourth but during lunch I got a ride to the store again to buy even more supplies. When I finally got home from work at 5 there were already 4 women waiting to help me start the cooking. We made chicken, pepper, mushroom, and onion skewers, pineapple salsa, spicy tomato salsa, homemade fajitas, and grilled pineapple. Over 15 people showed up all wearing red, white and blue. Some of them came and then found out the dress code and went home to get changed. I even gave a little speech to everyone about what the day means to Americans. The party was a huge success and tons of fun for both me and my neighbors. Plus I got to bring in the 3rd goal of Peace Corps and share my culture with my host country. 

I plan to continue this tradition and celebrate all of the holidays I'll be missing out on at home with my new family here. Hopefully it will keep me from getting all mopey dopey self-pitying around the holidays. Plus I'm sure everyone here appreciates the free food.

Enjoy the pictures!