 Around the World
Japan
The Japanese celebrate a holiday similar to Halloween called Bon Festival which takes place July 13th to the 16th. The festival comes from Buddhist tradition. It is the their belief that your
ancestors' spirits come back to their home during the Bon Festival. Families offer special foods to the spirits of their ancestors at their family altars. Japanese folk dancing is preformed to welcome
their ancestor's spirits and paper lanterns are lit during the ending of the festival and placed in the rivers to send the spirits back on their way.
Korea
The Koreans celebrate a holiday similar to Thanksgiving and Halloween called Chusok. It starts on the night before the 15th day of the 8th lunar month and ends on the day after the 15th. The holiday
is celebrated by families getting together and eating. In the evening they get dressed up visit the tombs of their ancestors. They thank their ancestors for the hard work they did and leave offerings
of rice and fruits. They dance, play games, and sing songs.
Mexico
In Mexico they celebrate El Dia de los Muertos (The Day of the Dead) starting on the evening of October 31st and lasting until November 2nd. The holiday is celebrated to honor friends and family
members who have past on. According to belief, their spirits return to the realm of the living at this time. Many families construct shrines in their homes and decorate it with the foods and drink that
the past relatives enjoyed while alive. They also leave photographs and candles so the spirits may find their way to the shrines. The burial places of these relatives are also cleaned fresh flowers are
placed beside them. The festivities during this time are grandiose including parades, parties, and lavish costumes depicting the dead.
Links
Novareinna'a Halloween around the world page.
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