Halloween is a super popular holiday as I know it in British Columbia. Costumes for kids, adults, and dogs alike are always important. There are parties, haunted houses, corn mazes, fright nights, and pumpkin carving activities for most of October. Fall in general is extremely exciting. Maybe it’s the colder evening weather on the east coast or maybe Québec just celebrates the holiday differently, but either way, it was way too difficult to find a pumpkin or even those regular fall activities.

Due to this shortage, my Halloween was ruined at first… until I realized, I was being slightly dramatic. We can carve more than just pumpkins! Did you know that turnips were among the first vegetables to be carved into jack-o-lanterns? This was because of how readily available they were in Ireland, where the tradition began. So, in replacement of pumpkins, we had peppers, squash, gourds, and watermelons to carve!

In all honesty, we forget how difficult and gross it can be to carve a pumpkin every year. You have to scoop all that goop out before really starting the carving itself. Carving these other vegetables was so much easier! Peppers and watermelons were the most popular options and the red of the watermelon makes them look so cool when carved! Even the pepper themselves dried to look wrinkly and slightly freaky to add to the element of spooky season. 

After talking with some locals, I found out that normally it’s too cold to do much Trick-or-Treating after 6p.m. and there is a slight conflict of religious beliefs and the celebration of All Hollow’s Eve. Yet this year there was a surge of children out on October 31st. Why? Nice weather! Yes, there still are costumes with jackets of course, but it is reasonably warm weather. Another large factor to consider is COVID-19 because while it is still around, getting out again after two years of limited contact, was refreshing. All in all, I was so happy to see the kids' creativity and excitement in the events. While the comparisons can be different between the West coast and the East coast, the base of the holiday is full of fun and lots of candy.

Main Photo Credit: Savannah Leroux