US expats mark Thanksgiving in a year of change

2016-11-28 08:00:00

On Thursday, the Costa del Sol’s 2,000 American nationals celebrated the annual Thanksgiving holiday in traditional style.
Members of the American Club, which has several chapters stretching from Nerja to Sotogrande got together at different events to remember the first settlers on American shores and to give thanks.
Estepona celebration
The American Club, Estepona chapter, met for lunch at the Marriott Playa Andalucía. Some 90 people attended, around half of whom were from the US and half from other countries including Spain, the UK, Ireland and Germany.
As every year, it was a lively event with plenty of animated conversation. However, this year the big topic of conversation was the recent victory of Donald Trump in the Americanpresidential elections earlier this month.
Club member Lew Bordeaux spoke for many, telling SURthat the American community was very divided about the result but that all hoped that good relations would be maintained with Europe as “a close partnership is fundamental”. It was important “to be cautious and wait to see what happened,” he added.
Three groups meet in Mijas
Meanwhile Restaurante Valparaíso in Mijas played host to a joint celebration of three of the American Club’s local chapters.
The get-together included a lunch and charity raffle in aid of the Cudeca cancer charity, as well as plenty more debate and discussion about what lies in store for American politics in the next twelve months before the next time the chapters meet for their Thanksgiving celebrations.
Ambassador’s message
Meanwhile outgoing USambassador to Spain, James Costos, has thanked people for their support during his time in the country and said that he is “firmly committed to advancing our excellent bilateral relationships with Spain and Andorra with Donald Trump’s transition team”.source surinenglish