Halloween was celebrated in Saudi Arabia, with revellers dressed in frightening costumes flocking to the event held in the capital city of Riyadh.
The “Scary Weekend” was held on Thursday and Friday in Riyadh’s Boulevard as part of the ongoing Riyadh Season.
The Boulevard was transformed into a venue-wide costume party, with dressed-up visitors granted free admission if they wore scary costumes.
The event was dedicated to displaying terrifying disguises and the inventive designs of Saudis and residents. The goal was to create an atmosphere of fun, thrills, and excitement as people learned about the stories behind the various character costumes.
Abdulrahman, one of the attendees, dressed up as the North American mythological creature Wendigo. According to legend, the folkloric creature is a malevolent spirit that possesses humans, instils greed and hunger in them, and cannibalises them, feeding on their flesh. This was Abdulrahman’s first time in the country celebrating Halloween.
“It’s a great celebration, honestly, and there’s a joyous spirit… I’m not sure whether it’s haram or halal. We celebrate it solely for the sake of having fun. “We have no faith in anything.”
While Halloween has long been avoided in the Gulf, attendees at the event described it as a harmless form of entertainment.
“Actions are based on intentions,” said one eventgoer, Khaled Alharbi. I’m just here to have a good time.”
Alharbi arrived with his family, dressed as a bloodied doctor, nurse, and consultant. They created a backstory for their costumes and arrived just in time for the city’s biggest costume party on the Boulevard.
This was also the first Halloween for the family.
