So, “Halloween” is pretty much nonexistent here in China. Or, as a friend quickly pointed out, most Halloween products/costumes are probably made in China – but rarely are they ever used here in China. The China Daily newspaper has a shout out to the infamous American holiday with some words to use about it in English, but that’s about it. They’ve turned it into a cultural thing. Which it probably is.

I looked high and low through this great city and I only found two places that had any inkling of this Reformation Day.

The first place was Carrefour, France’s version of Walmart. PS China has Carrefours everywhere. I noticed they had one small endcap at the back of the store with a small collection of awesome Halloween costumes. (The pirate hat even fit!) But was dismal at best and zero Chinese people were even stopping to look at them. In a way, I wish I would have had that small collection for last year’s cowardly lion fiasco, but alas, that’s in the past.

The second place was… Pizza Hut. Now, as I’ve mentioned before, Pizza Hut in China is a formal affair: expensive food, fancy interior, and clean bathrooms. It’s not necessarily a place where the local people go, unless they’re rich or they really want Western pizza. Because of their targeted marketing, though, I decided to hit it up whenever October 31 rolled around. Honestly, it’s kind of nice not being constantly bombarded with marketing gimmicks for specialized holidays everywhere you go around town.

Well, I did do the unthinkable and ate dinner at Pizza Hut today. The food was overpriced and unsatisfactory. I probably won’t be returning anytime soon.

At least I got this awkward photo with a Chinese hostess dressed as a witch!