Mapping Your Halloween
NEIRAD enilno edition
Contrary to popular belief, you are NOT too old to trick or treat. Why not get free candy for as long as you possibly can? Just be sure to have a convincing outfit--some people are reluctant to give out candy to costume-less teens.
You may find it hard to get a princess costume that actually fits, however, there are advantages to being older on Halloween. One advantage being that you don’t have to hold your parent’s hand around the block or stay within a two-block radius of your house like you did when you were little. However, the pivotal question lingers: With the entire town of Darien to roam, which area will provide the best trick or treating? Let’s break the town up into five different sections, one for each of the five elementary schools: Holmes, Ox Ridge, Royle, Tokeneke, and Hindley.
Let’s start with the Holmes district. The houses are close to each other which means a lot of candy in little time making. This aspect of Holmes makes it an optimal area for trick or treating. Most residents in the area also give out full size candy bars. When asked where she likes to trick or treat, Dana Howe, a sophomore resident of the area said “Holmes all the way baby! The houses are closer together, so you can get more candy faster. And a lot of people go all out on the décor.” But this area is known for being filled with “starter” homes with families that tend to have a plethora of small children. So, if you plan on staying out past nine this may not be the place for you.
Moving north into the Ox Ridge district, you’ll find that while the number of houses does not decrease, the houses grow farther apart. The streets are long and often lead into dead ends. On these roads you’ll have to plan your route carefully. While there is a good deal of houses, resulting in a good deal of candy, it may take longer to attain it. If you’re up for a bit of walking, this is the perfect place for you, if not move to another part of town.
The Royle school district is an excellent option for anyone living in the Ox Ridge area who wants to trick or treat outside of their usual comfort zone. While the two districts sit side by side, the atmosphere couldn’t be more different. This area has a lot of streets, which often end in cul-de-sacs for an optimal turnaround. “When I lived on St. Nicholas, there were always four streets that were parallel to each other: Knollwood, St. Nicholas, Fox Hill Lane, and Peach Hill. All of them had these amazing houses, and tons of decorations. So much fun!” said sophomore Charlotte Phillips. Alex Iqbal also raved about the area when she said “The little streets that branch off Mansfield are good ones to do. Some houses will give you whole candy bars and one house has a really long drive way and when you got to the top you see this really spooky glowing house that had a huge spider sitting in the rocking chair on the porch. They always have scary music playing too.” Houses are moderately spaced, not as close together as Holmes but certainly not as far apart as Ox Ridge.
Once you reach the Tokeneke district, houses begin to spread apart again, with very few dead end streets. The down side is that many of the houses give out raisins and apples instead of candy. “From what I've seen of the Tokeneke area, the trick or treating isn't very good. The houses are too spread apart in most of the neighborhoods and there are a lot of winding roads,” says Tokeneke resident Elizabeth Leimkuhler. Tokeneke does have good deal of private and unpaved roads, so if you choose to get your candy in this area, be sure to go with someone who lives there.
Finally, as you complete the circle of Darien, you end up in the Hindley district. This area of town is rumored to be the best place to trick or treat, seeing as it contains the Noroton Bay area. Here, the streets are close together as are the houses, which makes it a very accessible area. In between both town beaches, this area offers prime locations to take a break from your tricks to enjoy some of your hard earned, well-deserved treats.
Before you make your final decision, think about what you want from your trick or treat experience whether its lots of candy in little time or other things to do besides trick or treating in the area. Once your decision is made, be sure to have fun in your location of choice. Try to get as much candy as you can, but don’t eat it all at once. There’s nothing like a stomachache to ruin a perfectly good Halloween.
