Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving. What for the Americans is a holy holiday where the whole family gathers around a huge roast turkey, for the Touries it is a day for lazing around. Most shops and attractions are closed, so time to indulge in idleness.

A bubble of cold air made it to Florida just in time for Thanksgiving and so I'm sitting on the terrace at a cool 21 degrees, enjoying the sun before heading back to cold and gray Germany tomorrow. Just the thought of it makes chilblains sprout.

It's time to summarize and it's time to say thank you because that's the meaning of Thanksgiving. You give thanks for all the good things that have happened to you. So many good things have happened to my husband and I in our lives. We have found each other, we have a wonderful daughter, a wonderful son-in-law and we have our adorable granddaughter and even though there have been better days in our lives in terms of health, we are happy to be able to enjoy our lives. Actually, that's exactly what we should be happy with. Or?

The summary of our vacation is mixed. We dared to carry out two experiments. While the first experiment in Costa Rica with people who were strangers to us failed because of the fundamentally different opinions we had, I would only declare the Orlando experiment a partial failure.

Of course, we will head to beautiful Cape Coral again on our next Florida vacation. Here in the north the houses are not nearly as comfortable. The biggest drawback is certainly that the outdoor life we love in South Florida is simply not possible here because of the very small terraces. In addition, the view of the canal and the morning silence are missing. But what I miss most here are the palm trees and that touch of Caribbean feeling that you have in south Florida.

A clear plus for Orlando is of course the location not far from the amusement parks and the proximity to two of the most beautiful beaches in the USA, Siesta Key Beach, where we spent a great day, and Clearwater Beach. Orlando also has its charms. But my favorite remains Cape Coral.

So now it’s bye bye Sunshine State tomorrow.

Tonight my family and I are celebrating a little Thanksgiving. With turkey, corn, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie, just like it should be. Thanks to Bob Evans for making everything fresh for us, so all we have to do today is get the microwave going. By the way, at this very moment there is a seductive smell of freshly baked cake on the terrace. The countdown to the family celebration seems to be running for our neighbors.

I say thank you now

Thank you for a wonderful vacation

Thank you for my wonderful family.

Thank you for my beautiful life