Turkey Day - that's what many Americans call Thanksgiving, the national ? celebrated every ? on the ? ? in ?. However, schools and many ? shops and offices are ? for ? days: from Thursday to ? night.
? is a special day for families to be together and to thank ? for all they have. Americans travel great distances to be with their families on this occasion.
Why is Thanksgiving such an important day ? The tradition started with the Pilgrims, the founders of America, who ? Plymouth in ? because of ? persecution. They wanted to start a new ? in America ? they ? practise their religion in freedom.
One ? ?, ? and ? left Great Britain on a small ? called the ?. Their sea voyage was so difficult that many Pilgrims died during the ?.
They arrived on the ? coast of North America in ? 1620 and founded ?.
The area was a wilderness. It was almost ? and they had no homes and ? ?. They immediately ? small homes, but it was too late to cultivate crops.
The winter was so cold and harsh that nearly ? of the Pilgrims died because of their ? living conditions.
The friendly Wampanoag ? helped them during the long winter.
In the ? the Pilgrims ? an Indian called Squanto, ? explained how to ? ?, hunt and live in the wilderness.
Soon the Pilgrims and the Indians ? good friends.
The Pilgrims worked hard and ? crops.
The ? harvest was excellent. By November ? ? ? food and a home. There was hope for the future.
Governor ? Bradford, the Pilgrim ?, decided to celebrate with a ? for the Pilgrims and the Indians. He wanted to give thanks to God. This was the first Thanksgiving dinner and it lasted for ? days !
Today the traditional Thanksgiving meal is similar to the first. People eat roast ?, sweet potatoes, corn, cranberry sauce and ? pie. Most families start the ? with a prayer.
The ? Thanksgiving weekend is the perfect time to start ? shopping. Big stores and shops are ? on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the Christmas ?.