Even though Halloween looked much different this year, we hope all of our family and friends were still able to muster up some spooky fun and indulge in a few treats. Halloween is one of our family's favorite holidays, so we didn't want the current situation to stop us from celebrating even though we had no idea what that would look like in Spain. It's hard to fully gauge a country's holiday traditions when you are in the middle of a pandemic.
We've seen a few storefronts in Seville and Granada decorated with plastic jack-o-lanterns and witches, but that's about it for ghoulish decor. Come to think of it, I haven't seen one real pumpkin anywhere, neither in a market or on a doorstep!
Kate had been counting the days until Halloween, so she immediately started working on her disguise the moment she awoke. Luckily, we stumbled upon a mini-market resembling a Dollar Store a few days ago that housed a small selection of Halloween accessories. We felt like we had struck gold, for if it wasn't for this store, we'd be coming up with something out of backpacks!
Not knowing if we'd encounter any Halloween spirit once we stepped foot out of our building, we set out to walk around for the afternoon in costume. One family member chose not to participate. In fact, this person was so embarrassed, he walked 25 feet behind us!
Sadly, we only saw ONE other person dressed up all day! We did have a delicious tapas lunch on a sunny patio along the river. After, we walked up to the gypsy caves on top of the hillside. The kids thought that was a little too real-life spooky. We capped off the night with trick-o-treating in our apartment and watching Hocus Pocus. Overall, Halloween was very different from usual but memorable, to say the least!
FUN FACT: Spain has a three-day holiday weekend that kicks off on October 31st with Dia de las Brujas—Day of the Witches. I hear mixed things about how it is celebrated in normal times. Some say it's a silly American holiday and others say many people do dress up and have spooky gatherings. By far, the main holiday observed is Dia de Todos los Santos—All Saints Day—on November 1st. Families celebrate their deceased loved ones by tending to their graves and bringing fresh flowers and food. November 2nd is the observed bank holiday, but it is also the Mexican holiday, Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), which is beginning to be celebrated more in modern days. Many people travel to see family or visit family graves this holiday weekend. However, because of COVID restrictions, much of Spain has closed regional borders or imposed perimeter lockdowns to stop people's movement in a bid to curb the spread of infection.
Decorating our Halloween-themed masks the day before.
Our spooky doll, Kate
Thanks, Uncle Mike! It’s great to hear from you. I agree it’s a beautiful tradition to celebrate our loved ones that have passed. I’m surprised we don’t have a holiday that focuses on that more too!
KATE, You win the first place prize this year. Great job! Wonderful how they celebrate their deceased relatives (should be a lot more important than Halloween). You guys have always been at the top for Halloween and it shows in so many great past photos. Austin is such a stud he must have all the little girls following him and of course he doesn't want to lose that with some silly costume. Ha! It's O.K. to stand out Austin! Having a full staff of latinos when we ran our business I would honestly have to say they celebrate family much more than most Americans do! Keep up the wonderful observations and photos Sarah! Love them all!