Halloween Now and Then

As one of the world's oldest holidays, Halloween is still celebrated today in several countries around the globe, but it is in North America and Canada that it maintains its highest level of popularity. Every year, 65% of Americans decorate their homes and offices for Halloween, a percentage exceeded only by Christmas. Halloween is the holiday when large amounts of  candy is sold and it is second only to Christmas in terms of total sales.

Halloween is usually celebrated amongst family, friends and, sometimes, co-workers. Parties and other events are planned on the day or in the weekends before and after this date. Adults may celebrate by watching horror films, holding costume parties or creating haunted houses or graveyards.
Many children dress up in fancy costumes and visit other homes in the neighborhood. At each house, they demand sweets, snacks or a small gift. If they do not get this, they threaten to do some harm to the inhabitants of the house. This is known as playing 'trick-or-treat'.
Some families carve lanterns with 'scary' faces out of pumpkins or other vegetables or decorate their homes and gardens in Halloween style. These were traditionally intended to ward off evil spirits. Some of the most popular decorations are jack-o'-lanterns, scarecrows, witches, orange and purple string lights, inflatable decorations such as spiders, pumpkins, mummies, vampires and Frankensteins.
Halloween parties usually involve games (often traditional games like bobbing for apples, searching for candy), scary stories and treats (usually a bag of candy and/or homemade treats).


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