Halloweenie

{last year}

Let’s talk Halloween.

(It’s called Veille de la Toussaint here, doesn’t that sound incredibly romantic?)

Halloween is another one of those holidays that leaves expat me feeling blah.

France hasn’t fully jumped on the Halloween bandwagon yet. There are dashes of it here and there, but The Spirit of the Great Pumpkin definitely hasn’t swept anyone away yet. For example, trick-or-treating; they haven’t figured this one out at all and I don’t know why because it’s not like it’s difficult… on October 31st you let your little gremlins dress up as little goblins and you send them outside to go door to door begging for candy. C’est tout! It’s that simple.

But here, they have it all wrong. Like two years ago, when they knocked on my door on the 28th, scaring the bejeezus out of Fifty (he wasn’t prepared, if it had been the 31st, he would have been prepared). And then this year, Papa’s Wife told us that the trick-or-treaters would be popping around last Friday… last Friday… the 26th! What in the name of Sabrina the Teenage Witch is that all about?!

Anyway, it doesn’t matter, because nobody came a calling last Friday. Not one little pirate, princess or zombie. It’s all very sad. And it’s all so crazy because France is the absolute perfect country for Halloween since November 1st is a holiday here (La Toussaint or All Saints Day).  Can you imagine what kind of trouble we’d get into in the States on Halloween if we didn’t have school or work the next day?! Holy Moly it’d get quite messy I’m sure. So yeah, the French need to find their Hocus Pocus and jump on board.

As for me… today I’ll dress Fifty in his Halloween t-shirt, we’ll watch It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, and I’ll tell him all about Ichabod Crane and the legend of Sleep Hollow. And maybe, just maybe, some little French gremlins dressed as goblins might come a knocking.

Joyeuses fêtes d’Halloween!
bisou

32 responses to “Halloweenie”

  1. I'll send my little gremlins over if you like – they'll be sure to give Fifty a fright! We actually went trick-or-treating with our American friends last Thursday because that was the most convenient day. Very confusing to French passers by!! Have a Happy Halloween!

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  2. You are so right…Around here in Bordeaux…their version of Halloween is perhaps a party for kids to dress up…and “apparently” they might go door to door at friends' houses who have been prepped for the Halloween candy giveaway…but for the most part – it's just an excuse to deguiser and get together. I say this is where the Americans need to teach the French a thing or two! Happy Halloween!

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  3. Oh…also how brillant…you have had 13 posts for October…How Halloween of you!!

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  4. Back in Finland we don't celebrate Halloween either but I would still love the idea of dressing up and having a Halloween party. Sometimes my french friends gets excited too, but not this year. So are just having a American night (homemade burgers and cheesecake, coke and stuff!) Coke I mean the drink. Why frenchies are so boring? (just kidding!)But back in home, we turn scary witches during Easter, and do same sort of thing as trick or treat. Except in Finland kids have decorated branches from sallow bushes and if you don't give Easter eggs and candies, you get whipped 😉 If you are nice and give eggs, you get the decorated whip for yourself.

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  5. There was a commercial attempt to get Halloween off the ground a few years ago. To much joy from the kids and much complaining about an American invasion of an alien concept from the parents.It petered out because parents wouldn't buy the sweets or costumes to the volumes needed to keep things going. I also think they didn't like having kids knock on their doors at night. There were tales of pushy big kids threatening people if they didn't have sweets.It's not easy imposing one nation's traditions onto another nation especially when France is often hostile to American imports.

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  6. There's a big Halloween party in our village centre for the kids (although I don't know how it's going to go given it's pouring rain here), but that's the extent of our celebrations. I carved a pumpkin but it went mouldy so I threw it out this morning. Our first year here I bought a fair amount of lollies to give away but not a single child came (not surprising, given we are in the boonies). I had to eat it all, and it was great. You have a lot more spirit than me – I won't be dressing up at all. In fact, the closest I'll be getting to spirit will be my rum apero.

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  7. While you and Fifty are watching Charlie Brown, don't forget to have a few treats yourself! Happy Halloween!

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  8. While you and Fifty are watching Charlie Brown, don't forget to have a few treats yourself! Happy Halloween!

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  9. I love Fifty's shirt! And I feel ya in Germany. My little tikes went trick-or-treating last year but said most people didn't have candy AND they didn't even dress up.

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  10. it would be SERIOUSLY dangerous if we had tomorrow off! the college kids would go wild. but I do think your homey Halloween sounds lovely – have fun anyway!

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  11. I don't know why I find the fact that Fifty has a special Halloween t-shirt so cute, but I do!Right now it's Halloween in full swing. I have a pumpkin candle burning, will treat myself to a Rocky Horror picture show matinee and will go to a dinner party tonight dressed like a slutty bunny – with absolutely NO explanation.Happy Halloween to you and your fam! I hope “little French gremlins” knock on your door!

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  12. If my little gremlins lived closer we would be knocking on your door tonight!

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  13. Just remind the French that Halloween is an ancient European tradition.

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  14. Just don't watch Frankenweenie unless you want to cry. I already made that mistake.

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  15. Gosh, I miss Halloween.here in Switzerland it's not celebrated either – the shops tried to launch it a few years back, but the stubborn Swiss are only comforted by their fixation with having things how they have always been (except for roads, which must be fixed on a regular basis) and they remained fairly oblivious.Meanwhile in Zurich, where the youngsters thing that all that is American is awesome, there may be some trick or treating here and there. My teen is going out with friends, I am staying home ready to distribute candy in case any Swiss gremlins may come-a-knocking.

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  16. Fifty looks awesome! Happy Halloween!It isn't that popular in Germany either, it is kind of sad. Such a fantastic holiday! But at least people don't have to work on November 1 in most parts of Germany!

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  17. HAHAHA! What? If I'd known we could trick-or-treat whenever we wanted I would have sent Avery around collecting chocolate for the last week. : )Ahhh…Sabrina the Teenage Witch. That made me laugh out loud.

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  18. We've only gotten one so far and he wasn't even dressed up, boo! 😦 LOVE your doggy!!!

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  19. Happy Halloween!!! I love Fifty's shirt. Did you get him a different one for this year? And I think that's so odd that they go the weekend before…

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  20. how creepy would it be if i should up at your door right now as a princess zombie….with my wolf clutch of course.sadly, i am sitting in my american living room eating all the candy that NONE of my trick or treaters picked up (maybe i live in an all-french apartment complex and I just don't know it).

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  21. It is almost midnight in Buenos Aires, Argentina and I have to be reminded that this was Halloween.They do not trick or treat here. There are no decorations.Nothing creepy ( except maybe that old guy that sells flowers on the corner) and nothing scary. No candy except the bag of M&M's my husband bought at the market .. sigh .. I miss Halloween .

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  22. I love that you mention those two Halloween treats because I've basically spent every commute to work this month listening to the audio of either Charlie Brown or Ichabod.Happy Halloween!

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  23. Oh well. At least Fifty looks cute. 🙂

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  24. Halloween was a bust this year thanks to the hurricane, so boy and I are hoping to go to Sleepy Hollow to do something festive (but drinking wine is always festive, oui?). Love your stories – I swear, you should put a book together because you have a brilliant writing voice 🙂

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  25. I moved to OH and they must be on the same mind set of France! Every day since last Saturday through this coming is a trick or treat night, depending on the city, except for the 31st itself. Kids went out on teh 30th and on the 31st it was so wierd to just sit at home.

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  26. “Sara In Le Petit Village” has been included in the Sites To See for this week. I hope this helps to point many new visitors in your direction.http://asthecrackerheadcrumbles.blogspot.com/2012/11/sites-to-see.html

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  27. No sign of Halloween around here, but love your dog's blanket. LOL Have a good weekend Diane

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  28. I hope you got some little gremlins! This is the first time we've lived somewhere other than an apartment building, so we had our first trick-or-treaters ever….and I ran out of candy. I'll be buying WAY more next time…and if there are Twix left over that I have to eat, so be it.

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  29. “What in the name of Sabrina the Teenage Witch is that all about?!”okay, that just made me smile so big. you win some cool points, Sara.

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  30. Mexico is all about Halloween. They are really supposed to be focusing on The Day of the Dead, but the American holiday has taken over. We went to 5th St. (popular tourist street) and there were tricker treaters everywhere. They would stop at the restaurant tables of tourists and ask for candy. Whole families were dressed up in full gear! It was great!

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  31. Well, look at it this way. If there are no trick or treaters, you get to eat all the candy! Time to embrace the Toussaint and buy some Chrysanthemums.

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  32. well if it makes you feel any better i got ONE group of trick-or-treaters. dangit!

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