感恩节相关小知识

1.1620年，一些清教徒乘坐“五月花”号船去美洲寻求宗教自由。他们全程航行了65天。由于该船是木制的，所以乘客们不能生火取暖或是煮饭。

Did you know that the Pilgrim trip to the New World aboard the Mayflower lasted 65 days? It was a cold and damp journey, and since the ship was wooden, passengers were not allowed to light a fire for warmth or for cooking their food.

2.在这110人中，半数以上的移民死于饥饿和传染病，不过仍有一半的人活了下来。在第二年，一位名叫Squanto的印第安人在很大程度上帮助了他们获得足够的食物。

Did you know that half of the 110 Pilgrims who had left England in 1620 survived that first year in the New World? In their second year, however, the Pilgrims flourished with plentiful food sources, thanks in large part to the friendship and guidance of an Abnaki Indian named Squanto.

3.第一次感恩节的时间是1621年的十二月，一共持续了3天，移民们借此机会感谢上天给予他们的丰赐。

Did you know that the first Thanksgiving took place in December 1621, when the Pilgrims held a three-day feast in Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts to celebrate their bountiful harvest?

4.直到200年后的1863年，林肯总统才宣布每年11月的第四个周四是感恩节，直到那时，感恩节才成为了美国全国性的节日。

Did you know that Thanksgiving didn't become an official national holiday until more than 200 years later, when in 1863 President Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of November a national day of thanksgiving?

5.每年的感恩节上，美国总统都会特赦火鸡。这个传统从1947开始。这些被特赦的火鸡会在农场里度过余生。而近两年，它们会被送到迪斯尼乐园。在当地迪士尼乐园感恩节游行中担任荣誉贵宾。这个传统仪式可以追溯到美国内战林肯总统当政的时期。1863年的一天，林肯的儿子泰德突然闯入内阁会议请求赦免一只名叫杰克的宠物火鸡，因为这只被送进白宫的火鸡，即将成为人们的感恩节大餐。

Did you know that it is tradition for US Presidents to issue a pardon to the White House Thanksgiving Turkeys? Since about 1947 the National Turkey Federation has presented the President of the United States with one (and in recent years - two) live turkey(s) in a ceremony known as the National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation. The live turkeys are pardoned and live out the rest of their days on a farm or, since 2005, sent to either Disneyland in California or Walt Disney World in Florida, where they serve as the honorary grand marshals of Disney's Thanksgiving Day Parade. While it is commonly believed that this pardoning tradition began with President Harry Truman in 1947, the Truman Library has been unable to find any evidence for this. The earliest Thanksgiving Presidential Pardon on record is with President George H. W. Bush in 1989.

6.最受欢迎的感恩节菜单由以下几道菜组成：火鸡，蔓越莓，番薯以及南瓜派。

Did you know that the most popular Thanksgiving dinner includes a menu of turkey, cranberries, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie? Then it's only fitting that Americans raise over 256 million turkeys. The biggest producer of turkeys is Minnesota, followed by North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia, Missouri and California.

7.平均每只感恩节火鸡的重量是15磅。

Did you know that the average Thanksgiving turkey weighs 15 pounds? Hens can range from 10 to 18 pounds, while toms can be as large as 25 pounds. The most traditional way to prepare a turkey is to stuff and roast it, although some chefs -- particularly in the south -- swear by deep frying their birds.

8.美国至少有三个小镇的名字里有Turkey（火鸡）这个单词。而有8个地方名叫Cranberry（蔓越莓）。另外还有20个地方名叫 Plymouth（普利茅斯），这也是首次举办感恩节的地方。

Did you know that there are at least three American towns named after Thanksgiving dinner's main course?There's Turkey, Texas, with 496 residents; Turkey Creek, Louisiana, with 357 residents, and Turkey, North Carolina, with 267 residents. There are also eight places and townships named Cranberry, and 20 places named Plymouth, after the location of the first Thanksgiving.

9.由梅西百货举办的感恩节游行是全国最著名的游行。每年都会由NBC转播。游行通常会有几个特定的主题，一些百老汇演出的场景，另外还会有很多卡通形象的气球所组成。游行最后会出现圣诞老人的气球，这也代表着圣诞季的开始。

Did you know that while there are many "Thanksgiving Day" parades held across the country, the most famous has to be the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City? The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is held annually every Thanksgiving Day and is televised nationally by NBC. The parade features parade floats with specific themes, scenes from Broadway plays, large balloons of cartoon characters and TV personalities, and high school marching bands. The float that traditionally ends the Macy's Parade is the Santa Claus float, the arrival of which is an unofficial sign of the beginning of the Christmas season.

10.感恩节后的一天被称为黑色星期五。人们通常由此开始圣诞节大采购，很多商店都会顾客盈门从而有大额进帐。而传统上用不同颜色的墨水来记账，红色表示亏损即赤字，黑色表示盈利。所以把这个星期五叫做黑色星期五。虽然黑色星期五这一天一般都会是一个大的采购狂潮，但基本还只能算是一年中销售额第二或第三高的一天，通常圣诞节前夜或之前的一个星期六才是最高潮。

Did you know that Black Friday -- the day after Thanksgiving, which is widely touted as the biggest Christmas shopping day in America -- is actually not the biggest shopping day? In fact, the Saturday before Christmas has historically been the largest volume shopping day. Black Thursday ranks anywhere from second to fifth in Christmas shopping days.