Hidden Cafes and Alleyways

Fall has always been my favorite time of the year. The trees are on fire, glowing with color, and around Halloween my spooky powers are at their peak. I actually went to Germany during my fall semester, because I thought fall was a universal frenzy of Pumpkin Spice Lattes and flannels. After traveling around, I realized the reason I love fall is because I live in New England.

The trees give me peace and serenity. The reds, yellows, and oranges are so vibrant, you feel like you’re in a painting all the time. As they fall around, there a little bit of satisfaction from crunching on the leaves with your cute fall boots.

Pumpkin Spice everything. And I mean everything. Have you been to a Trader Joe’s lately? Yeesh. I’m a fan, but pumpkin spice pasta, soup, alcohol, crackers… you name it, they have it.

What really sets New England apart for the the fall time is the holidays. I’m not talking about Christmas and Hanukkah. I’m talking about Halloween and Thanksgiving. Yes, they have these holidays all around the country and Halloween across the world, but it’s just not the same if you’re not in New England.

For Halloween I celebrated in Germany and Milan. Veryyyyyyy different. Remember that scene in Mean Girls where Cady says Halloween is when people dress up scary, but in American people use it as an excuse to the wear lingerie and animal ears? Exactly. I showed up to my internship in Germany and everyone was zombies, or bloody, or actually scary looking. Sure we do that too in American, with some bomb eye make up and a mini dress.

I showed them pictures of my friends’ costumes on Facebook. My boss said, “Oh, it is sexual in America?” I didn’t think so, but apparently.

Costumes aside, hello Salem, Massachusetts!

Salem is historically central to Halloween and Paganism in American. The Salem Witch Trials led to the death of 20 innocent people. Since this time, witchcraft has been largely misunderstood. Salem offers a historical sites, vegan restaurants, and real witchcraft shops with palm readings, tarot cards, candles, and spell books.

Lastly, Thanksgiving is special in New England with Plymouth, Massachusetts and the special rock we pretend is the marker for where the ships landed. On a real note, we need to reevaluate “Christopher Columbus Day” and change it to “Indigenous People Day”. We should no longer celebrate a day in the name of rapist and one who caused genocide of Native Americans.

Thanksgiving though, myself and many other takes this as a special time to reflect on what we’re thankful for and spend time with our loved ones. For vegans it also means Tofurky, the savior of the meatless.

The atmosphere and historical landmarks that connect to our fall holidays makes New England’s ambiance the perfect setting for September to November. If you’re thinking of settling down for a few months and experiencing a new culture, New England is an amazing place for the fall, with a Pumpkin Spiced Latte in hand.