The lack of spookiness here is frightening. I have come to the conclusion that there is not Halloween in Europe because there are not any decorations at all. The scariest thing happening anywhere nearby is Brexit, which was scheduled to happen on Halloween but was canceled and extended until January.

If you are not knowledgeable on the topic of Brexit, you are in luck. With a quick crash course presented by your host, me, you will know enough to speak with a little bit more knowledge on Brexit.

The British Exit, or Brexit for short, references Great Britain’s attempts to leave the European Union (EU). By leaving the EU, Great Britain wants to regain sovereignty over itself, specifically its own policies on trade, national security and immigration protocol. Still being a part of the European Union does not allow Great Britain to make any major changes on its own, so they are only able to operate within the boundaries set up by the agreement signed by each country within the EU.

Is there anything spooky about this? No, not really. The final vote for Brexit was supposed to take place on October 31. This will not be happening. The deadline set by the EU has been extended for another three months, leaving every country in Europe-- especially the UK-- exasperated from the lengthy process that was started two years ago.

After several conversations with locals, I found the general consensus was an imperfect understanding of what Brexit is. What I could gather was similar to what I explained before. The main reasons people say the UK is trying to leave the European Union are the UK’s desire to manage its own trade, security and immigration outside of EU policies and processes. Unfortunately, this is the only information almost everybody I have asked has-- including Britain citizens.

To some, Brexit is the enlightened dawn of a new age for Britain as the country leaves behind the shackles of the European Union in order to freely dictate their own destiny once again. For others, Brexit is the beginning of the collapse of Britain likening it to the British beginning of the Great Depression. For most of the rest of the world, and a distressing number of British citizens, the mood hovers between confused and wishing the whole mess would be over.

It seems that my Halloween in Europe has been centered around Brexit. The spookiest time for England this year is simply a jumbled mess of confused British shouting!

Alexander Nesmith is a sophomore studying communication.