I grew up without Halloween and even when I moved to the States, I haven’t really actively gotten into it until I had Soren. I mean I have always liked the atmosphere, the parades, the decorations, the costumes, the silliness and the fun but I enjoyed it as an observer rather than a participant. That is to say I never had a cool costume.
New York City throws some of the best parades in the world. It’s an incredible show of fantasy, imagination, extravagance, daring, and boldness. It’s messy, exhilarating, provoking, loud, colorful, and never-ending (can last until the morning). This is how adults celebrate:
And as much as children do not associate with New York, it is actually a very kid-friendly city. There are tons of activities of all kinds for the little ones especially around the holidays. This year Lincoln Center (home to the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic and American Ballet Theatre) opened its plaza to the invasion of the little monsters. There were trick-or-treating, endless costumes, also endless tantrums and sugared up toddlers running around like crazy.
It was our first real Halloween. I was tempted to make Soren a cute little animal but knowing that he would never ever agree to wear a costume with a head piece, I decided we would be vampires. Honestly I went with the easiest option there was: just bought cheap costumes at a nearby pop-up shop. Next year, and in the years to come, I really need to step up my game. No more laziness. I’ve got to get more elaborate and funny and unique. But I have to admit we ended up with one funny Dracula running around the house and the Upper West Side. We gelled his hair back with Dad’s gel while he was eating breakfast (his favorite hobby) and distracted him with a banana when putting on the costume. The morning was fresh and warm as we headed towards Lincoln Center stopping by the famous 69th street. It’s a street in our neighborhood that gets closed for the day for everyone to enjoy the out-of-this-world house decorations and trick-or-treating.
Here are a few shots from the day:
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