The Study Abroad Newsletter

Halloween in Japan

Mikiʻala DeMello

Art Major
Josai International University, Japan

billboard in shibuya
This photo was pretty much the only one I could take since it was so busy to the point that I was afraid to take my phone out in fear of dropping it. However, in this photo, there are three streets that can be somewhat seen. Each street was sardine packed with people and alcohol on the floor.

Before coming to Japan, I gave myself a mission to watch every single youtube video of other people here, just to see their experiences and how they viewed this country. With all the videos I watched of people going to shrines, temples, Tokyo Disney, or festivals, there was one event that struck my interest a bit more than others. Halloween in Japan or more specifically, Halloween in Shibuya, where Japan’s infamous crossing street is. The videos I watched about this particular event were filled with people in extravagant costumes, bustling streets, parties, different types of Halloween themed cafes and so on. It seemed extremely fun and a great time to get really creative with your costumes. However, although I was excited while watching these videos, the real thing nearly came close to what I was expecting.

It was a week before Halloween, I was excited to be apart of Japan’s take on Halloween and started to ask some friends who lived here what it was like. A friend who lives in Tokyo told me that it’s a great experience, however, only if you know how to get around in the crowd. Another friend of mine who goes to the same university as me told me that he only went once with his girlfriend and he had a terrible time. He said that people would get extremely drunk and some would actually start feeling people up. He told me that if I go, I need to be alert and stay close to my friends. I brought this up to my friend in Tokyo and she told me that there are hardly incidents regarding assault because there’s police at every corner. This gave me some reassurance, but I was also very hesitant. Despite getting different views on this event, I eventually went just to experience something I’ve wanted to be apart of.

It was the big day, Halloween. Me and my friends first went to a small Halloween party that was held by the university because they were going to have pizza. We stayed there for about an hour then got ready to go to Tokyo. We ended up getting to Tokyo around 10, thinking that it would be less crowded since it was a bit late. However, it was filled with more people than we imagined.

Once we got out of the main station in Shibuya, there were tons of people in costumes and regular work clothes. You could tell who were there to party and those who just got stuck in the sea of humans. There was also a long line of police officers keeping everyone in one area. We weren’t sure what was happening, but it really looked like a scene from World War Z when the zombies were being held outside by a giant wall. There were 6 of us altogether and we made sure to stick together because we could easily be broken apart in the crowd. We tried our best with a train type strategy, but some of us kept getting pulled away from the train. There were people shoving, drinking, and yelling. We found a clear area for us to stop and rest and stayed there for maybe 2 hours. It was a small corner of a three- way street stop and we were able to watch everyone. While we were here, many men came up to my friends dressed as sailor moon and a female version of Edward Scissorhands. We eventually got tired of standing and went to a nearby cafe that overlooked the street. We stayed here for 3 hours watching over drunk people in costumes. There were groups wearing wedding dresses, Mario and Luigi costumes, Santa Claus, anime characters, and so forth. There were even people half-naked asking for hugs and some who wore lingerie. It was a really bizarre experience.

All in all, it was interesting and messy, but it was something very new. We decided that it was a one time only thing. I suggest that if anyone wants to experience it too, just be ready for puke on the ground, sardine-like crowds, and many easily-agitated and stressed out people. Or some really really happy drunks. This was one of the most memorable events I’ve had in Japan.

Once we got out of the main station in Shibuya, there were tons of people in costumes and regular work clothes. You could tell who were there to party and those who just got stuck in the sea of humans. There was also a long line of police officers keeping everyone in one area. We weren’t sure what was happening, but it really looked like a scene from World War Z when the zombies were being held outside by a giant wall. There were 6 of us altogether and we made sure to stick together because we could easily be broken apart in the crowd. We tried our best with a train type strategy, but some of us kept getting pulled away from the train. There were people shoving, drinking, and yelling. We found a clear area for us to stop and rest and stayed there for maybe 2 hours. It was a small corner of a three- way street stop and we were able to watch everyone. While we were here, many men came up to my friends dressed as sailor moon and a female version of Edward Scissorhands. We eventually got tired of standing and went to a nearby cafe that overlooked the street. We stayed here for 3 hours watching over drunk people in costumes. There were groups wearing wedding dresses, Mario and Luigi costumes, Santa Claus, anime characters, and so forth. There were even people half-naked asking for hugs and some who wore lingerie. It was a really bizarre experience.

All in all, it was interesting and messy, but it was something very new. We decided that it was a one time only thing. I suggest that if anyone wants to experience it too, just be ready for puke on the ground, sardine-like crowds, and many easily-agitated and stressed out people. Or some really really happy drunks. This was one of the most memorable events I’ve had in Japan.

Shibuya This photo was taken by my human since I didn’t take much of the actual people in the crowd. If you zoom in a bit, there’s a Wendy’s restaurant. In front of it was a group of guys dressed as anime characters and climbing on the chains that protected the store. There were police officers in front of them, but they didn’t do anything about it. The police officers were mainly there to keep people in one place and to move them when vehicles came through.