1. What do you think about Halloween?
Transcript item
Elena: In Italy, we don't really celebrate Halloween, because the day after Halloween – so the first of November – is the Day of the Dead and this is a very important festivity for us. But every year my mamma buys some sweets for the children that come to do trick-or-treat at, to her house.
Joanne: I live in France, and Halloween isn't really a traditional festival here, but nowadays it is celebrated to some extent. You see Halloween decorations in shop windows for example, and the children enjoy it too.
Jonathan: In Hong Kong, where I live, Halloween is mostly celebrated by kids. They dress up and then they go out in the evening and walk around and wear their nice costumes.
Jo: Well, there's kind of, like, a battle where I live. I live in Barcelona, in Catalunya, and the traditional celebration on that day is la Castañada, which is when people eat sweet chestnuts and sweet potatoes, and that's really nice. But Halloween has kind of come in from the outside, from the United States, and I think if you ask my students – well I know if you ask my students who are children and teenagers – they all say they prefer Halloween because it's more fun. There's more things to do.
Elena: I don't really celebrate Halloween, but when I was a child, me and my friend went around my hometown in Italy and we did trick-or-treat. Last year, me and my housemates did jack-o'-lantern and also prepared a cake and we watched horror movies for the Halloween night.
Jonathan: No, I do not celebrate Halloween. Actually, I've got enough spiders in my house already, as it is, so I don't need any more of them! I don't really like scary things. The only thing I like is pumpkins, so maybe I'll eat some pumpkin, er, but that's as far as it goes for me.
Jo: I don't really celebrate Halloween these days. Less and less. Um, but the last time I celebrated it was really fun. I was going to a big party, and me and my friend dressed up as birds, as crows. And we spent hours and hours making these crow costumes, with feathers, and that was really fun. Er, actually making the costumes was more fun than the party, really.
Joanne: I think Halloween's a really fun celebration. I get into it: I decorate the house, I like to carve pumpkin lanterns. I'm often in the UK, actually, at that time of year and I like going round and seeing how all the houses have decorated, and when my kids were younger, they used to love going trick-or-treating.
Jo: I like Halloween. I mean, these days, as an adult, I don't really want to dress up. I don't like the commercial element of it. I don't want to just buy lots of plastic things that I'm going to throw away the next day. But I like the creativity that people use to decorate their houses, make pumpkins, er, dress up, I think that's brilliant. And when I was a kid, I loved it and I love all the imagination and scary stories. I think...I think it's good for children. So, yeah, I’m pro Halloween.
Joanne: This is my favourite part of Halloween. It's the pumpkins. So here are some pumpkins which I've grown in my garden, and I'm going to carve some pumpkin lanterns and also I think I will use some of them for pumpkin soup.
In this video, some of our friends and colleagues tell us their opinions about Halloween, what they do on this special day and whether it's celebrated where they live.
If you'd like to find out about the origins of this festival, you can read more in our Magazine article.
Now tell us about you!
- Is Halloween celebrated in your country?
- Do you celebrate Halloween?
- What do you think about Halloween?
- Is there another festival at this time of year that you celebrate?
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I'm from Mexico and here we don't know much about Halloween here we know it as the day of the dead and it's one of the most beautiful times in all of Mexico and the most beautiful for me
Hi melitza ✿
I'd love to hear more about 'The Day of the Dead'. What sort of things take place in Mexico on this day.
~ Tina ツ
LearnEnglish team
Hello everyone, I live in Morocco, and I don’t celebrate Halloween. But my daughters have always loved this holiday since they were little. They enjoyed dressing up and putting on makeup; I would make pumpkin cakes, and they would watch horror movies with their friends… not too scary, though! Now they live in France; and they love still Halloween. For her little boy, my 4-year-old grandson, my eldest daughter with the other moms in her neighborhood, arranges lots of surprises and makes pumpkin cakes. The children dress up in costumes. They go door-to-door, asking for treats with the phrase, "Trick or treat! They are really happy. It's a great moment.
I’m from Ukraine and I don’t really celebrate Halloween. When I was a child there was no celebrating in my country. I found out about this holiday in adulthood. Now a lot of kids and teenagers can opportunity to celebrate it. They dress up and make up then they go out in the evening and walk around. Also people decorate their house and carve pumpkins. Kids adore carving fun pumpkins and candle is placed inside the pumpkin. There are many horror movies that children like watching. As well, there are a lot of plastic things in the shops but I don’t like to buy them because I’m going to throw away it the next day.
I live in Galicia and we love all kinds of parties, and overall if it is with good meal on the table, and here we adopt all the fairs of the world such as Saint Patrick's Day, Halloween, Chinese New Year and many more.
Halloween is not really my favorite fair, but I see that young people enjoy this Outum Carnival.
Last Halloween, a lot of my daughter's friends came over at home to watch horror movies all night afterward to trick-or-treat in the afternoon.
Hi fersanrio,
It sounds as if people in Galicia love a good party or festival!
I think Halloween can be a lot of fun for children. My kids used to love it so much when they were younger! I hope you and your family have a great Autumn and a fun Halloween this year :-)
Best wishes,
Jo (LearnEnglish team)
Hi,
I live in Valencia, Spain and I don`t really celebrate Halloween because I don´t like it. It´s a day when you should think about the loved ones you lost . The only think I like is doing decorations with my kids, but not the scarry ones. Must be something, nice, sometghing funny. I prefer Christmas :-))
Hi!
I'm from colombia and here we celebrate halloween as well.
Indeed it's a great tradition mostly for children and teenagers. although there are many adults that enjoy this festival and they can dress funny costumes.
In my opinion halloween seems fun but i don't really enjoy it things like scary movies because these sort of movies I'm afraid to watch them. But I really enjoy it seeing films with good wizards and firies, that have a deep history and happy ending.
Hi caciris2003,
I completely agree with you about scary movies. They give me nightmares! But I also love to watch fantasy films with interesting characters and a good storyline.
Have a fun Halloween!
Jo (LearnEnglish team)
Is Halloween celebrated in your country?
In Myanmar where I live, do not celebrate Halloween. But some adults wear interesting costumes and participate in their area. And also we don't have trick or treats culture.
Do you celebrate Halloween?
No, I don't. But I really want to try it though. That festival looks exciting and I love spooky Vibe.
What do you think about Halloween?
Cute and fun. People decorate their homes and wears a lot of different costumes look really happy and attractive.
Is there another festival at this time of year that you celebrate?
Of course, we do. We have Thadingyut festival, some people known as "lightning Festival." We light candles all over Streets and home to show and pray our Buddha is coming down to the town.
Hi Mary Billi,
Happy Thadingyut! We'd love to see a photo of the lights in your festival - if you like, you could share one here!
I hope you can join in some Halloween celebrations too :-)
Best wishes,
Jo (LearnEnglish team)
I live in Myanmar. Halloween isn’t a traditional festival here, but nowadays it is celebrated in some organizations to some extent. I don't usually celebrate Halloween, but I love seeing how other countries celebrate it. I think it is fun and interesting.
Exactly! I agree with you
Hello everyone :) In Ukrainian families Halloween isn't so common, but the youth loves it! We have parties,but don't decorate our houses and children don't ask for candies in a scary costumes.Also the older generation is afraid to celebrate this holiday, due to the fact that it is the Satan's day :)))
However ,the shops always make a lot of decorations and Halloween sales))
I really like this Holliday.Cause it's another day,when u can dress up as any character and spend time with your friends and family /
Hi vikusik_,
Where I live, Halloween is also mainly for the kids, I think! They really love dressing up and walking around outside in their costumes.
How did you celebrate it this year?
Jonathan
LearnEnglish team
Hello,
We have been celebrating Halloween in Germany for about 25 years, more or less.
In the meantime, our children are grown up. When they were at the age of 4 to 12 years, they/ we have extensively celebrated Halloween ... Before this great day, a funny face was carved into a big pumpkin, then a candle was put inside. On 31st October, the little children dressed up as witches, ghosts, wizards, etc. came to us. First we all made handicrafts, then we ate delicious spider salad and worm sausages and woodruff drinks in the house which was decorated with spiders, lanterns, pumpkins. Then we went singing from house to house. Mostly we parents were in the background. The children recited poems in the village and asked for sweets. Personally, I loved Halloween, although many Germans say that this is a pagan custom and would only scare people. Sadly, there are actually bad people, especially in big cities, who put on a scary mask and dress up and then mug and rob people. Caution is advised! This is then really very dangerous and can traumatise children and older people in the worst case. Children should not be out alone!!! You should not open a door without first checking who is ringing the doorbell!!!
Yours,
Jutta
In recent years, people celebrate Halloween in Japan too. Especially young generation love it. Some people take part in the party with their favorite costume. But I am middle age , so I don't have special time in Halloween.