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Thank You for Everything!!

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Last weekend, I had a wonderful opportunity to spend Thanksgiving holiday with my host family. There are some wonderful experiences such as watching a big parade, eating a delicious dinner and experiencing the marvels Black Friday.

First, I was surprised when I watched the really big Macy’s parade and many people who watched the parade on TV. This parade included many popular characters in America such as Snoopy and the Wimpy Kid. Then amazingly, I also saw some Japanese characters in this parade. I saw Kitty, Pokemon and Power Rangers. I was happy when I found some Japanese characters in this parade. It’s because Japan affects America even if it was just a little. I realized, in America, I can find many more things than I expected from Japan such as Japanese companies, Honda or Suzuki, or characters. It is really interesting for me.

Second, when I finished watching the parade on TV, it was time to eat dinner. Then I was surprised again because I thought we only eat big meal at night. However, at lunch, I ate a big meal such as turkey, ham, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. The reason why I misunderstood was my host family said we have a big dinner today, so I totally believed I would have a big dinner at night. However, actually dinner was used to mean a big lunch by my host family. It was also an interest thing, but there was one more reason why I misunderstood. It was Japanese people usually eat big meals at night when they have some celebration. I could feel a difference of culture through this meal.

Third, after dinner, my host family and I checked advertisements for Black Friday. I was really surprised. It was the third times to be surprised on this day. It’s because many stores opened from midnight. At first, I couldn’t understand that but I went shopping with my host family from midnight. I saw many people lined up to make a super long line to enter the store. We joined the line and we could enter the store 20 minutes after the opening, so I understood many people went shopping from midnight. It was really amazing. Japan also has a big sale after New Year’s Day but this sale doesn’t open from midnight. One common point, Japan and America have people who wait in line for long time before the start of the sale such as whole day or from 2 days before. I didn’t buy so many goods, but I could really enjoy the atmosphere of Black Friday.

I really had good experiences on Thanksgiving Day including the parade, dinner and Black Friday. I had knowledge of Thanksgiving Day, but I could understand more through these experiences. Moreover, I could compare American and Japanese culture. The wonderful experience is better than knowledge to understand the foreign culture very well.

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