They came. They had fun. They left.Our annual Halloween party is always about 1 hour in length, and in that time we do many activities. This year’s party had some new activities and some trusted, previously used activities.It’s amazing to think that when I came to Japan many years ago, there was virtually nothing connected with Halloween in Japan.Fast forward about 20 years and now there are Halloween snacks of all sorts, Halloween cakes, cookies and other sweets, and Halloween events of one sort or another. It’s still mostly kids who participate and trick-or-treating is something usually done at one location, not door to door.Still, it’s nice to see Japan starting to embrace Halloween even if it is just for monetary gain by companies.Halloween forces me to use some of my creativity juices. Every year I must come up with a new costume and I try to think of something that would be understood in this culture. TV show or movie characters would have to be ultra-famous for someone to attempt to use that for their costume idea.The Halloween party also requires that people be entertained. In North America, people attend a Halloween party and generally make up their own entertainment as the party continues, for good or bad. Here in Japan, parties are usually carefully orchestrated events that keep the participants busy. Free time doesn’t seem to be appreciated.Today’s party was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed my costume so much that I may wear it for much of the remaining week of October. I get to wear rumpled clothes, I don’t have to shave, and in general I don’t have to worry about my appearance.You’ve got to love Halloween.