By Edward Cooper

Halloween is a time of year that brings out the kid in all of us. The costumes, the candy, and the sense of excitement always combine to make for a special celebration. And although the holiday doesn’t have a long history in Japan, it is definitely gaining traction here. Azabu Gardens has been doing Halloween with its own unique style, offering plenty of treats for costumed children and an ideal opportunity for parents to mix and mingle. In fact, people say that the building is beginning to gain a reputation in the neighborhood as a great place to go for trick-or-treaters—and for the impressive costumes that the front desk staff wear!

I dropped by to see the excitement for myself, and I was delighted to see that Azabu Gardens was happily keeping the new tradition going. The fun started around 4:30pm, when kids from the building and kids from the neighborhood started showing up. They kept coming through the evening, and I imagine that I saw at least 100 children, including more than a few repeat customers. They were decked out in a dazzling array of costumes—there were plenty of superheroes and princesses, but I was surprised to see even one kid come dressed as a glowing jellyfish! It was easy to see just how much work that parents put in to helping their children look their best for Halloween. Plenty of parents were wearing costumes themselves, and getting their pictures taken with the costumed front desk staff. Everyone was having a blast.

It was a nice time to chat. A lot of residents dropped by, and so did non-residents who lived in the neighborhood. A lot of new residents have moved into Azabu Gardens since this summer, and it was nice to see them talking with residents and learning about their favorite places to shop, eat, and enjoy Tokyo. The kids, of course, loved the trick-or-treating, and finished off the night with their bags filled with goodies by the time that things wrapped up around 8:00pm.

The children decked out in their costumes and joyous smiles were the highlight of the night. People are already looking forward to next year!