October kicks off the winter holiday season with our favourite US import, Halloween. John Hillman tries to sum up attitudes to spookyness on the other side of the English Channel.

The UK is often accused of being too quick to ape the US. Whatever misadventure they embark on, be it food or foreign policy, we dive in with all the enthusiasm of a naive lovestruck schoolboy, as the rest of Europe looks on bemused.

But while surging obesity rates and dubious wars are just cause for our neighbours to tut disapprovingly and raise their eyebrows, at least we can say we have embraced some of the better things too.

Halloween is fast becoming one of the most popular holidays of the year. School kids love it because they get to dress up and extract sweets from their neighbours; Grown-ups just enjoy any excuse to get drunk in fancy dress – it really is a holiday for all ages.

In many parts of Europe people remain quite resistant to what they see as nothing more than a crass consumerist US-style marketing exercise. In France it is reasonably controversial amongst the more traditionalist elements, although the lure of rum punch, fake blood and fishnet stockings is proving hard to resist. Its popularity is growing year on year.

From what I can gather (correct me if I’m wrong) Belgium and Holland simply don’t have a clue when it comes to Halloween. Apparently there is something similar in Holland around the 12th November but it involves children singing politely at people’s doors in return for sweets, which sounds just horrible. I mean trick or song? I think most of us would happily take the dog poo through the letter box option over the 10 minute rendition of Dutch folk songs by the cute and cuddly brigade, eurgh!

My friend in Madrid informs me that in Spain they are embracing Halloween with all the gusto you would expect from Europe’s most ‘up-for-it’ party nation. The fact that November 01st is a public holiday certainly helps, so this is my top recommendation for anyone thinking of heading away for Halloween this year.

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For information about minicruises to Spain, including P&O’s Halloween themed minicruise to Bilbao, including fancy dress ball with one of Britain’s best live party bands, click here

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Image Credit: John Althouse Cohen

Tags: Belgium, Britain, France, Lifestyle, Netherlands, Spain // Add Comment »