Oh Paris

My mother, who instilled me with a fierce love for Halloween lore and festivities, always asks me if I’m doing anything to celebrate in Paris. “Meh,” I inevitably say, “It’s just not happening here. I’ll probably just end up making pumpkin soup again.” In France, I explain, Halloween is a recent import associated strongly with candy companies and “American imperialism”, and the spirit’s just not there. Also, while France counts regions such as Brittany, whose Celtic roots have infused the local culture with a fair share of legends, superstitions and tall tales, the dominant culture in the country is one of Cartesian logic. I always joke that ghosts don’t bother haunting the old mansions and cemeteries of Paris anymore, since no one believes in them anyway.

In short, if you’re looking for Halloween fun in Paris, be aware that it’s a pretty sparse affair here. However, there are still ways to celebrate the season in spite of the lack of Halloween ambiance.

• Manning Leonard Krull’s spirited new site documenting the weird and unusual in the city of light, Cool Stuff in Paris, has an entertaining and helpful guide to Halloween in Paris.
• This year, historic arthouse cinema Le Champo is hosting a midnight Halloween tribute to American neogothic filmmaker Tim Burton, with a marathon including Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands and Corpse Bride. The festival begins at midnight, so try to get tickets ahead.
  Location: Le Champo Cinemas, 51 rue des Ecoles– Metro Odéon or Cluny La Sorbonne

• Finally, All Saint’s Day on November 1st is a solemn, peaceful holiday commemorating the dead. At Père Lachaise cemetery, Montparnasse Cemetery or Montmartre Cemetery, a long stroll among the flower-decorated graves is a more culturally authentic way of marking the passage into Autumn.

Halloween in Paris (?) originally appeared on About.com Paris Travel on Saturday, October 31st, 2009 at 07:41:37.

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