As students, Halloween is no longer simply a day to dress up and overindulge in sweets, instead, it morphs into an extravagant spectacle: Halloweek. The week building up to Halloween, which this year falls on a Friday, is one of the most socially important weeks of the year. Whether you overindulge in parties, nights out and booze, or take the cosier approach of scary films and ghost themed cupcakes, the week is definitely one to have planned out. After all, you would not want to miss out on the spooktacular fanaticism…
The city of Edinburgh is traditionally fitting for Halloween, with its gothic architecture rendering it to have a resounding number of fun activities to take part in in the run up to the big day. One option could be to take part in a lantern-led tour of Mary King’s Close, which explores beneath the Royal Mile and promises a creepy and historically interesting outing. Another choice could be to go pumpkin picking at Craigie’s farm to truly embrace the autumnal season. Similar to this, you could come to The Student’s pumpkin carving social on Monday, 27 October, and craft a spooky item of décor for your flats, so your home also exudes the Halloween spirit.
For the big day itself, there are so many options to take advantage of. Primarily, if you find Halloween to be an overwhelming and stress-inducing holiday, an incredibly valid choice would be to light some pumpkin spice candles and watch a Halloween horror classic like Scream. Or alternatively, if horror is not your cup of tea, Hocus Pocus is a significantly more comforting classic, truly enjoyable to all. However, if the thought of a night out is calling your name, there is a huge variety of clubs to choose from, including: Subway Halloween, Nightvision Halloween in Liquid Rooms and Indie Thursdays hosting Indie Fridays at the impressive venue: The Caves. If one of these options is for you, I urge you to please buy a ticket beforehand, not simply because of the overwhelming busyness at all these clubs on Halloween, but also, more importantly, to save money!!
Alternatively, a third option, and in my opinion the best option, is a house party. Halloween is made for house parties. Friends of friends can come together and meet in a more friendly setting and embrace the spooky spirit wholeheartedly with no time limits or pressures of having to make sure you are accepted into the club. This also provides you with the ability to avoid the chaos and mass hysteria out on the streets if that is what you so wish.
Overall, whatever you decide to do this Halloweek, ensure you make the most of it and truly embrace the fun messiness of the week, as Halloween will not be the same when you graduate…
Image by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash.