Any Polish graveyard this evening
The only thing I’ve experienced (in West Germany) is that people tidy up the graves of their dear relatives, place a conifer arrangement on it and light a candle.
Pretty sure the entire DACH region observes this.l, don’t they? It’s a public holiday in many countries too
In Germany, it’s up to the states if they declare all saints, reformation day or neither a public holiday. Subsequently, all saints is a public holiday in Catholic rooted states but not in the Protestant rooted, as Protestants don’t have the concept of worshipping saints.
TIL, thanks!
I will give my 2 cents: in the 90s, my Italian family held a vigil of sorts at home, with a rosary prayer and then dinner with some dishes that were only prepared in this occasion (nothing overly fancy, over time it just got associated). Nowadays, I think some nuclear families still hold a short vigil, but mine doesn’t anymore. It feels it got less popular with the drop of religious attendance/affiliation.
Trick or treating is becoming increasingly common, (as in: it used to not exist and now some kids go around, not many).
I honestly forgot about it this year, until yesterday evening. Next year I’ll try to carve a pumpkin and do my grandma’s special recipe.
Aye, kids go guising and we crave turnips
In Poland it is one of the most important holidays, just after the Christmas and Easter. Many families would travel through whole country to visit graves of their relatives (and, by the way, relatives still living in the area). Millions of candles will be lit on the graves. Graveyards are busy with visitors for a week, with real crowds today and probably tomorrow.
I passed by a graveyard yesterday and it was filled with lights, so I’m going to say in some form, yes.
This is in Sweden
Belgium -That’s still a public holiday although the now two weeks school holidays have been renamed to autumn holidays or similar. People still get some flowers to the graves of their family, clean up a bit, basic stuff. No deep meaning, just of habit.
I had to look it up. Appeartently it’s today. I’m in the Netherlands
That confirms why our Dutch neighbour asked us what were all those French people doing at the graveyard this week.
Appeartently
I love this word. It’s much more logical than “apparently”. Although a bit less efficient.
Whoops 🙃
Did you get trick or treaters last night? We did for the first time (Noord Holland area).
We didn’t, but my area (Drenthe) is firmly rooted in Saint Martin.
Same in Groningen indeed
France. It’s a national bank holiday. It also falls during the 2-week-long fall school vacation. Older people tend to visit their loved ones’ graves. Florists sell lots of those ugly flowers that are only for the dead (never can remember their name even in French, that’s how ugly I find them.)
The (usually…) long week-end is an opportunity for many people to visit friends or family.
There’s no special food, unlike Easter lamb or Christmas foie gras.In the last 2 decades Halloween became kind of a thing, with spooky shop windows, scary books on display at the public library and stuff, but I only get 0 or 1 group of trick-or-treaters every year. It’s mostly an excuse for high-school and college student to party and get drunk.
Here in Slovakia it is very “important” for some people, still. I personally (and lot of younger people) not care so much, but almost all off older generation goes to visit graves of their relatives. Just to visit them or have rememberence moment, or how to say it. This involves big increase in traffic in whole country, and its pain to go anywhere these days. But I like to visit cemeteries at nigth, when every grave has its own candle. It looks very nice, but other them that, nothing special for me, other that the pain of traveling :D
The pop group or the clothing retailer?
British and I’ve never even heard of it. So no deffo not, interesting to know it exists!
