万圣节快乐 Wànshèngjié kuàilè (Happy Halloween!)

As a general rule the Chinese don't celebrate Halloween.  That said, Suzhou has many western expats that do, so the trend is catching on.  Our local 7-11 sized grocery store stocks customs and decorations as does our Metro (the Chinese version of Sam's Club). Many of the apartment and housing compounds organize their own trick-or-treating events.  LBean's school does not recognize Halloween, but they did have a free-dress day (no uniform) and she wore pajamas to school.  

Dressed in orange & black and ready to party!

EBean's school does celebrate Halloween and took the children trick-or-treating in each classroom. She chose to wear her Korean Hanbok and be a Korean princess.  She's been very multi-cultural this week.  On Sunday, Jamie brought back beautiful scarves from India for all of us.  On Monday EBean decided to wear the scarf as an Indian sari to school...all day long!  She has an amazing teacher that kept re-wrapping the scarf when it fell.

In the evening a brave, brave friend in our apartment building organized a Halloween potluck.  It felt like hundreds of people (but it really wasn't) gathered in the lobby of our apartment building for hotdogs, baked beans, chips, potato salad, egg rolls, Chinese dumplings, cookies, cakes and lots of other yummy things.

We had a picnic on the floor!

EBean with her friend T

A cupcake, a Korean princess, and Cleopatra!

For the third year in a row, I pulled out my Scarlett O'Hara dress that I had made in Shanghai our first fall in China.  Did anyone happen to read the story about the high school teacher that wore the same outfit for class photos for about 30 years?  I think I'll be like that for the next 30 years with my Halloween costume!

I made Jamie put on a fake mustache so he could be my Rhett Butler.  I appreciate his sense of adventure!

ChinaBean is old enough that she caught onto the idea of reaching for candy very quickly.  She even tried saying "trick or treat" a few times, but not to the dad in the scary mask.  When she saw him she hid underneath my dress!

Often I am told that EBean and I look very much alike (minus the hair color difference).  I don't usually see it, but I think our cheesy grins in this photo do look a bit familiar...

ChinaBean didn't do too badly with her loot.  I think it has something to do with the fact that our upstairs neighbor let ChinaBean empty half her bucket into ChinaBean's Halloween sack.  (Thanks Anu - you might find that candy in your entryway some night!)

The photo below is not a great picture from a photographic point-of-view, but it sums up the night so well.  The air was cool, but not cold and the rain stopped for the evening. I like the lights of other apartment buildings in the background, children coming and going in their costumes with parents trailing behind, a big group people and bigger sense of community.  A perfect night.