It is morning here, but on the far side of the world where many of you are reading this, the ghosts and goblins are coming out and I imagine many of you are out trick-or-treating with your kids or just getting home. I just wanted to wish everyone celebrating a happy Halloween.
Whether you’re out with your kids, watching horror movies, or raiding the kids’ candy after they go to bed, I hope it’s a fun one.
Here in Japan, Halloween keeps growing every year. Department stores and convenience shops fill up with orange and black displays, and there’s no shortage of costumes.
But the one thing still rare here is trick-or-treating. Japan has a strong sense of neighborhood privacy, and most people wouldn’t dream of knocking on a stranger’s door. Instead, you’ll find organized events in shopping streets or schools where children can “trick or treat” in a controlled way. Even so, the holiday has carved out its own Japanese flavor — part cosplay, part street festival.
It’s always interesting watching how Western holidays take root here. Christmas became a couple’s night with fried chicken; Valentine’s Day became a one-way women-chocolate-giving ritual — and a new day, White Day, materializes as the reverse, men giving to women. Halloween is newer and we don’t know quite what Japan will do with it yet, but it is growing more and more every year.
Here’s a haiku I wrote some years ago for the event:
in this country too
the little demons
are preparing
Wherever you are — happy haunting.
❦
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David is an American teacher and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org. Write him on Bluesky. |