Based on the displays in the 100 yen stores, you would think that Halloween is huge in Japan. And it is, sort of–just not quite as Americans think of it. To American kids, Halloween means two things–costumes and trick and treating. The Japanese nail the costume part, but the free candy to strangers thing needs a little work.

Late afternoon on Halloween we headed down to Motomachi, a fancy street of fancy shops. I heard that the street gets jammed and all of the stores give out candy, so it seemed like a safe bet as far as scoring Halloween loot.

Crowds? Check. Trick or treating? Not so much. We noticed huge lines with dozens of kids in costumes lined up, then saw that they were waiting for the chance to say trick or treat…at one store. It certainly was not a door to door thing, and only a few places gave out candy. I saw a few parents holding some sort of flyers that likely explained which stores to hit.

We soaked up the general Halloween-y ambiance then headed to a ramen shop for a quick bite before heading home.