PackAbroad Ambassador Allie Denton: Halloween Edition

In honor of Halloween occurring a few weeks ago, I would like to share my experience studying abroad during Halloween. I studied abroad in Prague, Czechia for my fall semester in 2018. I was there from August to November so Halloween was right around the end of my program. Halloween fell during the week that year, so my friends and I decided to go out during the week to celebrate. I had heard that internationally, Halloween is not treated the same way as it is in the U.S. and that Europeans do not dress up to the same extent. This was very true. When my friends and I went out in our makeshift costumes, we very rarely saw anyone else dressed up! Spending Halloween abroad was so much fun because it gave us a reason to talk to people about our costumes and explain them.

The most fun part was coming up with an outfit. There was no Party City in Prague, but there were a couple stores that had cat ears, devil horns, or some other simple costume pieces, so we worked with what we had.

Not being in America for Halloween made it more special in my eyes since our costumes became a sharing point to talk about what we normally do for Halloween. Although not typically celebrated, there are some events for Halloween in Prague and All Saints Day (November 2) is celebrated throughout the city.

My experience studying abroad was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I loved every second of it, especially being there for Halloween!