Ann Schneible says trying to assemble a Thanksgiving dinner in Italy is an adventure. Asked about her most memorable moment, she said: “For me, it was having to transport a 15-plus pound turkey across Rome on public transportation, only to discover after I’d brought it home that the head was still attached.”

The Virginia-native was a student at Rome’s Pontifical University Santa Croce for several years, and Thanksgiving could be a difficult time. “For most of the year, the daily experience of living in Rome as an expat is chaotic enough to distract from homesickness: I think any major holiday that’s spent away from family is difficult, since it’s during these times that we slow down and think about the family we’re missing. On Thanksgiving, this can be especially challenging,” Schneible told Crux in an e-mail interview.