African Halloween

I'm a bit late in writing this up, but this year we actually celebrated halloween with trick or treating!! Last year when I tried to organize something with the French neighbors on our street most answered that they weren't American and it wasn't their tradition. I guess they forgot to notice that we weren't in France either, and that as a multicultural community it can be nice to celebrate new tradtions with others...

This year however, Deanne, a very motivated young Texan mom whose French hubby works for the French oil company Total, single-handedly organized a halloween party followed by good ol' trick or treating on the Total compound where they live. All were invited and we weren't going to miss it!
Noah and I had just flown back from Paris the night before, and that morning I surprised Jourdain and Cecilia with the news that it was Halloween. They were more than excited to dress up, and quickly invited our housekeeper Ines' two boys to come and join in the fun. Boy were THEY excited to come along when I told them they were dressing up as a pirate and a king. I still don't think those two boys have the slightest idea as to what it was all about except that a whole lot of French people gave them candy when they knocked on doors. Their mom says they're not complaining though, even though she made them give most of their candy to other less fortunate kids in their neighborhood the next day.

Yann the king (or knight I guess since we had no time to make a crown!) went home a happy boy.

And Etienne took his role as a pirate (with American flag bandana no less) quite seriously.

At age 4 Cecilia has reached the pink princess stage in life.

And Jourdain was just happy to wear whatever his mom gave him! (No time to get a cowboy hat and the gun's all wrong, but hey - what does he know? He lives in Africa.)

The climate at the party was a few degrees warmer than what I grew up with, allowing many to go barefoot.
Deanne had the great idea to teach everyone the about bobbing for apples. I think I was the only guest who'd ever heard of such a wacky idea!!
The evening wound up with trick or treating in the Total apartment buildings. I sure hope Deanne sticks around Port-Gentil for a few more years! (Creepy eye effect on mom in picture here is not Halloween related - I just don't know how to fix it in my picture software.)

In the end we were so busy having fun that we never had time to carve up watermelons. I just may have them do it this week anyway.