The Spirit of Halloween 2018

A look at some spooky (and fun) pre-Halloween festivities this year from South Korea, across the U.S., Ukraine, Japan, England, Singapore, Ireland, and more

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Alan Taylor Alan Taylor is a senior editor at The Atlantic, where he oversees the Photo section.

With Halloween night only two days away, people around the world are in the full spirit of the season, dressing up, taking part in parades and festivals, hosting parties, and tiptoeing through haunted houses. Collected here today, a look at some of these spooky (and fun) pre-Halloween festivities this year from South Korea, across the U.S., Ukraine, Japan, England, Singapore, Ireland, and more.

1. A reveler in costume with a broom jumps during a Zombie Walk event in central Kiev on October 27, 2018, ahead of Halloween celebrations on October 31.

Anatolii Stepanov / AFP / Getty

2. Members of the street-performance troupe Macnas participate in their Halloween parade called "Out of the Wild Sky" in Galway, Ireland, on October 28, 2018.

Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters

3. A light display illuminates the historic Whitby Abbey in Whitby, England, on October 24, 2018. The abbey will be illuminated over Halloween Week and visitors will be able to experience the site after dark and wander through the dramatic ruins of the abbey famously noted for being the inspiration behind Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

Ian Forsyth / Getty

4. Surfers arrive in costume at the 12th annual Blackie's Halloween Surfing event in Newport Beach, California, on October 27, 2018.

Frederic J. Brown / AFP / Getty

5. Boston terriers in costume are seen during a Halloween event in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo, Japan, on October 28, 2018.

Toru Hanai / Reuters

6. Members of the performance troupe Macnas participate in a Halloween parade in Galway, Ireland, on October 28, 2018.

Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters

7. A jack-o'-lantern under construction during the Great Pumpkin Carve contest in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, on October 18, 2018

Kelleher Photography / Shutterstock

8. A man in a scary clown costume takes part in the "Haunted Subway" event in Union Square Station in New York, on October 18, 2018.

Atilgan Ozdil / Anadolu Agency / Getty

9. A boy chooses a pumpkin among many at a pumpkin patch in Irvine, California, on October 20, 2018.

Frederic J. Brown / AFP / Getty

10. Liam Vasquez, 2, left, and his father, Will Vasquez, right, try on Halloween masks at a department store on October 3, 2018, in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

Brynn Anderson / AP

11. People take part in the Kawasaki Halloween parade in Japan on October 28, 2018.

Toshifumi Kitamura / AFP / Getty

12. Locals dress up in various Halloween costumes during celebrations on October 28, 2018, in Tokyo, Japan.

Damon Coulter / Barcroft Media via Getty

13. A participant in a Halloween event in Kawasaki, Japan, on October 28, 2018.

Toru Hanai / Reuters

14. Costumed people and pups gather for Halloween celebrations in Tokyo, Japan, on October 28, 2018.

Damon Coulter / Barcroft Media via Getty

15. A man in a Halloween costume rides a personal watercraft in the East River at East River Park in Manhattan, New York City, on October 28, 2018.

Carlo Allegri / Reuters

16. Surfers dressed as the green soldiers from Toy Story, Irma Perez (left) and Susan Janechek, strike a pose at the 12th annual Blackie's Halloween Surfing event in Newport Beach, California, on October 27, 2018.

Frederic J. Brown / AFP / Getty

17. A ring-tailed lemur eats seeds out of a pumpkin at the San Francisco Zoo on October 26, 2018.

Justin Sullivan / Getty

18. Members of the troupe Macnas perform in Galway, Ireland, on October 28, 2018.

Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters

19. Performers with Macnas take part in a Halloween parade in Galway, Ireland, on October 28, 2018.

Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters

20. An attendee wears a "Beaker" Halloween costume at KCRW's Masquerade Bowl at the Los Angeles Theatre on October 27, 2018.

Michael Tullberg / Getty

21. A pit bull dressed as a kissing booth participates in the Haute Dog Howl'oween Parade 2018 on October 29, 2018, in Long Beach, California.

Chelsea Guglielmino / Getty

22. Costumed participants pose before a Halloween parade in Kawasaki, Japan, on October 28, 2018.

Toru Hanai / Reuters

23. A giraffe reaches for a jack-o'-lantern filled with treats at the London Zoo on October 25, 2018.

Henry Nicholls / Reuters

24. A ghostly decoration hangs above the shop doorway during Whitby Goth Weekend on October 27, 2018 in Whitby, England.

Ian Forsyth / Getty

25. People dressed in costumes take part in a Halloween festival on October 27, 2018, in Seoul, South Korea.

Chung Sung-Jun / Getty

26. A man in a frightening costume hides in the dark during the "Haunted Subway" event in Union Square Station in New York on October 18, 2018.

Atilgan Ozdil / Anadolu Agency / Getty

27. Members of the media react as they walk through the "Haunting of Oiwa" haunted house during a Halloween Horror Nights 8 media preview at Universal Studios Singapore on September 24, 2018, in Singapore.

Suhaimi Abdullah / Getty

28. A participant poses for the camera after a Halloween parade in Kawasaki, Japan, on October 28, 2018.

Toru Hanai / Reuters

29. Susan Godwin and her dog, Tasha, pose at the 28th Annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade in New York, on October 28, 2018.

Kevin Coombs / Reuters

30. The silhouette of a weather vane depicting a witch and her black cat on a broom, photographed at sunset on October 15, 2018, in Riex, Switzerland.

Fabrice Coffrini / AFP / Getty