A1-20 · Halloween and Christmas: USA vs. Poland

Halloween and Christmas: USA vs. Poland

This year, Basia is going to celebrate Halloween and Christmas in the USA. Here is what she knows.

Halloween (October 31st). In the USA, Halloween is a big holiday for kids. They wear costumes: witches, ghosts, superheroes. In the evening, they go from house to house and say "Trick or treat!" People give them candy. Families also carve pumpkins with funny or scary faces. In Poland, Halloween is newer. Poles remember their dead on November 1st, All Saints' Day. They go to the cemetery and light candles. "I'm going to wear a witch costume," says Basia, "and I'm going to carve my first pumpkin!"

Christmas (December 24th–25th). In Poland, the big day is December 24th, Christmas Eve (Wigilia). Families share a thin wafer called opłatek and eat beet soup, carp and pierogi. After dinner, the presents are under the tree. Święty Mikołaj (Saint Nicholas) or, in some regions, Gwiazdor brings them. In the USA, Santa Claus brings the presents. Children leave cookies and milk for him on December 24th, and he comes down the chimney at night. They open their presents on the morning of December 25th. Some presents are in big socks, called stockings.

"I'm going to miss our carp," says Basia, "but I'm going to love the cookies!"