Waseda University is one of the most famous universities in Japan. There are a number of campuses around the country, but its main one — and the one where I attended this festival last weekend — is located in Nishi-Waseda, Tokyo. It boasts an impressive roster of alumni: six postwar Prime Ministers; corporate heavyweights including one of the co-founders of Sony and the CEOs of Honda and UNIQLO; and internationally-acclaimed author Haruki Murakami just to mention a few. And every year, its students hold a festival.

The 11th of July has come and gone, and along with it, the official opening of the giant Gundam statue in Odaiba, Tokyo. Here’s a look at what the scene was like just over a week later, flashing lights and all…

The giant Gundam statue in Odaiba, Tokyo, is complete. And I make no reservations in saying that it is undoubtedly one of the coolest things I have ever seen.

Japan is well known for a many things. Temples, kimonos, sushi… and giant robots. Mobile Suit Gundam – the Japanese animated TV series that over the last three decades has spawned a dizzying array of spin-offs, manga, novels, videogames and plastic models – is turning 30 this year. To mark the occassion, Bandai Namco are spending some of the gadzillions they’ve earned from the franchise to build a 1:1 scale, 18 metre tall, 35 tonne Gundam model in Tokyo’s Shiokaze Park.

So, Christmas in Tokyo was a bit of a mixed bag depending on which side of December 25th you were looking at. It was literally over before it technically began, but the reason for its swift boot off the seasonal stage quickly became apparent as the following days unfolded. For as air-headed as Christmas may be for the Japanese, the far more traditional New Year period proved to be anything but.

Christmas in Tokyo is something of an anticlimactic affair. The lead-up is dazzling, but Christmas Day isn’t even a public holiday here and everyone goes to work as usual. But did I mention that the lead-up was dazzling?