VIDEO – Every year, this national celebration brings Americans together, but causes spectacular traffic jams on all the country's roads and endless queues at airports.
Thanksgiving is a national celebration that Americans wouldn't miss for anything. And it is not the impressive images of the congested roads, these November 26 and 27, which will say the opposite. Every fourth Thursday in November, families gather around the traditional stuffed turkey to thank God for the harvests and the good things that happened to them during the year.
The American Automobile Association estimates that, to meet in the four corners of the country on the occasion of this holiday, no less than 80 million Americans are on the roads, traveling 80 kilometers from home on average. The most spectacular and most often broadcast images are those of California highways, the length and regularity of which are clearly visible to the naked eye. The 386,604 kilometers of road in the third largest state in the country therefore clearly do not frighten travelers, who know how to be patient.
Identical situation in airports, where the queues never end. At the Denver (Colorado) airport alone, for example, authorities expect more than 840,000 people between November 22 and December 2. Several flights are therefore scheduled in a row for the same destinations, in order to ensure places for all travelers. This Friday, supermarkets will also probably have nothing to envy of airports, since Thanksgiving purchases will mix with those of the famous “Black Friday”, a day during which it is possible to obtain articles with important promotions.