Happy Spooky New Year! How did you ring in 2012? I’m in northern Italy with Seba — lots of mulled red wine and delicious, cheesy foods.

In Tokyo, many of my friends did the countdown at Decadance Bar, a colorful drag Gothic hangout. Preta Porco’s cheery yellow face always makes me smile.

A few months ago, Adrien saluted the bartender-performer during “Porco night.”

But nobody does it better than Porco.

That’s Adrien again — he’s quite the shape-shifter. You’ll always find cyber-glam creatures of the night at Decabar.

These Lolitas look sweet, but they’re here to party hard.

Under the blue hair and glasses, there’s Yukiro.

A place for pirates and absinthe.

There’s always a cyber-Goth-electronic DJ on hand. During special events, live performers like Selia grace the stage.

What’s this pink thing?

Something to be straddled?

Outside the bar, there’s a quieter lounge area where you can touch up your devil makeup.

Fun with torture chairs.

To top it off, there are delicious dinner sets.

Come to Decadance Bar! It’s right above Christon Cafe, Oriental Wave Bldg 8F, 5-17-13 Shinjuku. Get off on the eigth floor, and walk up to the 9th. For more Tokyo alternative club recommendations, view my Nightcrawling guide.

I leave you with Arina and her deadly custom nails art.

Have you ever seen an underground bar quite like this?

Album of the Day: VNV Nation – Automatic

They call her La Catrina, or the elegant skull. She’s all bones, usually clad in a long robe and carrying a scythe. And this is her holiday: Day of the Dead.

On November 1st and 2nd, Mexicans honor those who have passed. But it’s not a gloomy holiday – quite the opposite. Day of the Dead is a vibrant celebration that shouts yes — the dead can dance.

I had the pleasure of celebrating Dia de Los Muertos this year… in the historic district of Mazatlan, Mexico!

Horse cigar ring: gifted from Erica Anenberg
Dress: gifted from Sourpuss Clothing

The ritual traces back to the Aztecs, who worshipped a god named ‘The Lady of the Dead’. In modern times, this ghoulish goddess is known as Catrina… And her image haunts every corner of Mazatlan.

Night falls, and the darkest celebrations begin. Family members visit graveyards, sometimes camping out all night. They pray and share their favorite memories of the deceased.

But I’m in the mood to dance. So I’m joining the Day of the Dead parade.

Locals gather in Old Mazatlan for the annual procession. They’re put on elegant costumes and painted their faces like skulls. With folk music and firecrackers, the dead have come back to life.

Lively, and slightly scary. (With my talented filmmaker, Melissa.)

I saw many colorful altars to remember the dead. They’re decorated with real or paper marigolds, photos, favorite meals and objects. And, of course, sugar skulls - which have the name of the dead written on the forehead.

There’s even a special food for the occasion: Bread of the Dead! Sold in Panama Bakery, It’s airy and sweet, and has a cross-bone on top. Don’t worry – it’s safe for the living to eat.

When the party was over, I hopped into one of these pulmonias (open air taxis unique to Mazatlan). Time to crawl into my coffin!

Are you familiar with Day of the Dead? What did you think of the celebrations and visuals in this post? If you have questions, I invite you to leave a comment here or on my Facebook; I’ll be sure to reply.

Song of the Day: Voltaire – Day of the Dead

Set your Tivos: my NHK Kawaii TV episode airs on December 17th! If you’re not in Japan, don’t worry; I’ll put up clips for you (as I always do).

My Japanese Addams family is the best; I’m grateful for their support over the years. So I brought the NHK TV crew to Midnight Mess: longest running monthly Gothic/Industrial dance club in Tokyo.

Yukiro spent two hours on this look, and it’s a masterpiece. But beauty doesn’t come without pain: he kept bumping his head into lights, and leaving spiderweb trails behind!

Red cherry swimsuit: from Pin-Up Girl clothing
Trailing Gothic vest: Gramm by Sinc, from Closet Child
Red skull tights: gifted from Artisan Socks
Cheetah print faux fur jacket: I wear this constantly. Banana Fish, from Closet Child Shinjuku
Long gem eyelashes: Amazingly, we found these in a 100 yen bin in a sporting goods store (!!). When we asked the owner why he was selling these, he laughed nervously and refused to answer. Sketchy…

The NHK cameraman has never been to an alternative event, and this was a perfect introduction. We goofed around with photos at the vampire fangs station.

Kenny Creation poured us absinthe. And one of my blog readers, Jonelle, introduced herself — a happy meeting that became part of show.

The band Xenophobia performed on sailor-themed stage.

My lovely Gothic ladies, Raisu and Kana.

I went on stage with Yukiro, Selia and Mistress Maya. We thanked NHK for coming to the party’s 9th anniversary.

It was also Selia’s birthday. Champagne and cake for everyone. (Thanks Naomi for taking these photos.)

Selia’s voice soars when she sings opera. She dedicated “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle” from Carmen to me.

For videos and photos from the previous Midnight Mess, come revisit this post.

The cameraman left around 2am, but we kept dancing to resident DJs (TE2, Statik and Maya) til morning.

Want to party with these enticing Gothic creatures? Then you must attend the next Midnight Mess, held monthly at Club Marz in Shinjuku. For more club recommendations, please read my Tokyo club guide.

Don’t forget to watch NHK Kawaii TV, and keep your bloody eyes peeled for the clips. I’d really appreciate it if you could Share this post: let’s put the spotlight on Tokyo’s Gothic underground!

Have you watched this program before? What’s your current favorite Japanese cute trend?

PS: I’m trying out this Amazon widget, below (it lets you hear songs with a single click). Let me know if it doesn’t work for you, or slows down the site.

Album of the Day: Switchblade Symphony – Serpentine Gallery

How did you celebrate Halloween 2011? I was in Mazatlan, Mexico for my travel video project. Since it’s a Pacific Coast port city… I was a spooky sailor girl!

HalloweenCostumes.com let me choose any costume from their massive site — you can imagine how I struggled. The site has thousands of outfits, from Steampunk to pirate, plus-size, couples, kids and skimpy. Take a look for yourself; I bet you’ll find something for your next dress-up party.

My sailor costume came with a hat, corset and skirt.
Contrast platform boots: Alice and the Pirates, from Closet Child. Perfect match.
Red purse with gold bow clasp: vintage Nina Ricci, belonged to my mom
Long black bead bracelet: actually a necklace. Gifted by Fashionology.

My filmmakers and I started the night in the Golden Zone. No costume? No problem: there were masks and wigs at the door.

A salute to the press trip organizers, who were very sweet and made sure we got the video footage we needed.

Clowning around with Mazatlan locals.

A few shenanigans later, we wound up in Old Mazatlan… but there was too much tequila involved, so I can’t show you the photos!

I can reveal that there was a costume contest. Did I win? You’ll have to wait until the video to see.

How did you dress for All Hallows Eve? What was the best costume you saw this year? And do you like what I wore?

Viva Mexico! I’m thrilled to share my Day of the Dead adventures with you — starting now. Gracias to the Mazatlan Tourism Board for making this special series possible.

I’m wearing gorgeous hair accessories gifted by BabyClay — love the feathers and hand-sculpted clay. The new collection, BabyVuDo, is available on Etsy, and you can request a custom design.

The ringlet hair is inspired by Milady in the Three Musketeers.

The bird claw and crucifix jewelry is gifted by Fashionology. A lovely collection of silver rings, necklaces, earrings and cuffs, inspired by art and nature.

My makeup is “classic La Carmina” with dark shading, white highlights and fake lashes. Don’t forget the trademark nail art.

My film crew and I shot three videos about Mazatlan’s dark art/culture. We began with a hotel tour.

Red purse: vintage Nina Ricci, from my mother’s closet. She wore it in the 1980s.
Goth top: h.NAOTO, from Closet Child
Skirt: Fernopaa, from Studio Alta Shinjuku
Epic boots: Alice and the Pirates, from Closet Child

We arrived in Mexico on Halloween — hence the undead look and RIP tombstones.

Real horrorshow, eh?

We’re currently editing the videos; can’t wait to show you the glorious architecture and beaches. (The dress is gifted by Sourpuss Clothing.)

So many golden moments.

The journalists on the press trip stayed in different hotels. Luckily, we had rooms at the spectacular Riu Emerald Bay. It’s an all-inclusive resort that opened only two years ago.

Animal-shaped towels on the bed.

Fresh coconut juice by the pool.

And every room has a balcony that overlooks the ocean. Now that’s heavy metal. (Bracelets gifted by Fashionology.)

Next, I’ll post photos of my Halloween outfit, and show you how we celebrated: tequila-style.

Have you ever been to Mazatlan, or anywhere in Mexico? Or celebrated Day of the Dead?