This is the fête that got things started. October was spent getting used to the country, the language, the culture and our jobs. A lot of time was spent attempting to navigate the administrative labyrinth. We were slowly getting to know the city and each other. Halloween was one of the first big activities and allowed us to get to know each other a bit more.
I knew before I left for France that I would do something for Halloween. I even packed a peasant skirt and belly dancing coin belt with a Halloween costume in mind. For me, it is an important holiday. It has nothing to do with the origins or current traditions of lots of candy. For me it is connected with Autumn-the falling leaves and the crisp feeling in the air when you can almost smell autumn the moment you walk outside. And basically, I love any excuse to dress up or put on a costume.
In France, Halloween was popular about 5 years ago. But it was seen as too commercial and as it has no cultural roots it quickly went out of fashion. In a class of 25 students, maybe two celebrated Halloween.
Getting together a costume in the USA is easy. There are ready-made options and rows of accessories in the supermarkets; costumes or inspiration in 2nd-hand shops; fabric and craft stores; and even entire stores dedicated to costumes. Not to mention the benefit of having parents nearby with a house full of random objects just waiting to be put to creative use. In France, it is much harder. Supermarkets dedicate only a tiny place to costumes, all of which are sized to 6 year-olds. Craft stores are hard to find, 2nd-hand shops almost non-existent. We did manage to find out about the one party store in the area and make the trek there (nearby we also found a fabric store and a craft/art center). This little foray (combined with shopping around town and some creative thinking) provided us with what we needed to decorate and create several costumes (“French man”, doll, Spanish dancer, gypsy, phantom, Zorro, French maid…).
The party was a great chance for the assistants to get together, but just as important, it allowed us to get to know the other residents of the foyer. It was a group of English, American, Spanish, French, German, Trinidadian, Canadian, and Australian. We danced, we laughed and it was great to see those for whom it wasn’t their culture still get into fun of things.
[Some of the gang]
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