The fact that Halloween is celebrated on October 31 is known by almost everybody all over the globe, but do you know how different this celebration is depending on the country? Here you can read a little about these unknown differences:
- Some Austrians leave bread, water and a light on the table before going to sleep on Halloween night.
- Belgians believe it is unlucky for a black cat to enter in your house or travel on a ship. The tradition for Belgians and most European people is to light a candle in memory of the dead loved ones.
- Canadians celebrate Halloween carving pumpkins and playing trick or treating.
- Chinese celebrate “Teng Chieh”, they place food and water in front of photographs of dead relatives while lighting some lanterns to illuminate the way of the spirits as they come to the living world.
- In Czechoslovakia, chairs are placed in front of the fire place, one chair for each living and dead member of the family.
- Mexican known this holiday as “El dia de los muertos” and it is a happy day for them. It is a time to remember family and friends who have died. They create an altar in their homes and decorate it with flowers, drinks, photographs and a colourful painted skull that symbolizes that Mexican are not afraid of death. Actually, this celebration is to literally laugh at death.
- Germans put away their knives, they do not want to get harmed by the spirits returned from the dead world.
- Spanish always light a candle to honor their dead relatives and decorate their graves with flowers. It is family time, not a big celebration as it is in Canada.
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