Halloween in an English village

I wasn't quite sure what to expect of Halloween here in England. Even though it developed here in Great Britain (All Saint's Day and All Soul's Day were inserted into this time of year by the Catholics uncomfortable with the pagan celebrations of harvest; Jack-o-lanterns evolved from an Irish story about a guy named Jack and the devil), it still seems very American to me. So I started asking around Quentin's school what people do on Halloween. Most people said it's not a big deal and occassionally some children will trick-or-treat in their neighborhoods. The stores had a few decorations and costumes, but no candy...yes, no ailes full of Halloween candy that we are used to. So I figured we would have a quiet night and trick-or-treat next year in Richmond.

Then I heard that a friend of ours, an American who has lived here 20 years (a "lifer"), has persuaded her small village over the last few years to organize a Halloween event. They hold a small disco early in the evening in the village hall with music and treats. After an hour or so, the children all leave the hall and trick-or-treat around the village. We knew we had to go!

We arrived after meandering carefully down winding dark roads (Sleepy Hollow-esque) to the hall which was appropriately across from a old dark church and graveyard. At the disco we danced a little, then made a few stops in the village.

Not all villagers were on board with this idea- some had "No trick-or-treating" signs in their windows, or the lights turned off. But several houses were decorated and gave out candy. One house gave out single gummies, unwrapped, and that was it- they need some more Halloween guidance. Another house gave out cupcakes (fairy cakes in England), unwrapped as well. That could of gotten messy. And my favorite: one house had a stuffed puma on the front porch. Creepy, but not in a Halloween kind of way.

But, overall it was just right for us. The kids left with a few pieces of candy, not the giant bag that one usually has to haul home after American trick-or-treating. And since the candy was mediocre at best, Quentin's bag is still hanging up on the coat rack barely touched.