Subuta （酢豚）

Japanese people are still concerned about aftershocks and radiation from the damaged reactors. But if you stay in Japan and walk down the streets of Japan, you'd notice people don't seem to be obsessed with the disaster all the time. Foreign people have left Japan for their safety, but I want them to come back when this situation is rectified.

I live in Kanto region, but I'm one of those people who want to dine out for a change of scenery. My favorite is hamburgers and Ramen, but I patronize Chinese dishes as well. The name of this restaurant derived from Beijing, but we call Beijing "Peking" in Japanese. 

I don't know if this drawing is an authentic Chinese one, but in my opinion it resembled one of the Japanese drawing styles called "Suibokuga".  

And this is the "Subuta". It includes vegetables such as onion, mushrooms, carrot that were stir-flied, and deep-fried pork. It is basically sour and tastes like ketchup. I have some friends who don't like this at all.

 I think those working in the tourism industry of Japan are hit hard by lack of foreign tourists. But now is the time to persevere and by the time Tokyo Sky Tree is completed we should be ready to welcome them back.

Walk in Akihabara -15-

I said many people in Japan were having difficulties, and when I was staying home I often felt aftershocks and that made me on alert. So I decided to go to Akihabara to make my mind refreshed. The TX line was available only once an hour because Tokyo Electric Power Company suggested we save on electricity.

 This is escalators of a building in Akihabara, and its operation was suspended. 

 Can you recognize the black screen is now off? 

 And the Gundam Cafe wasn't open. 

 But most people in Tokyo were walking down the streets as usual. I could see maids as well. 

 And this Ramen shop "Kiwami" was open. This shop is facing the UDX building in Akihabara.

When I got here at 12am, there weren't so many people in Akihabara, so my friend and I could sit at a table soon. This ramen tasted really good, which my friend denied somehow.

Of course people in Miyagi, Fukushima are still having difficulties, and we should be mindful of that all the time, but I was relieved to see so many people enjoying shopping with the high being 18 degrees Celsius.

Earthquake -2-

I wanted to take pics of my neighborhood to show the damage done to my area, but what I could see was trivial like collapsed gates of a house. And taking pics of it would get on the house owner's nerves.

I said Tsukuba city didn't suffer much damage, but people in my area are experiencing difficulties. Now running water and electricity are available at home, but it is extremely difficult to get gasoline. So many cars are lining up before gas stations early in the morning, and some people were seen fighting for gasoline.

And supermarkets in my area were filled with people scrambling for food, and staples like rice, bread were snatched away instantly.

What worries me very much now is the radiation leak from the reactors in Fukushma prefecture (my prefecture is next to it.) I don't want to stress the leak too much, as those living in Fukushima should be worrying much more than I am...

I felt a very strong tremor today whose epicenter was observed off the coast of Chiba prefecture, which pushed down the Nikkei avarage in the afternoon, and I keep losing weight probably because my body has been on high alert since Friday.

Sadly the death toll doesn't stop climbing and it is more than 3,000....I really don't know when this nightmare starts to end.

Earthquake

My area, Tsukuba didn't suffer much damage, but the earthquake that happened yesterday was so strong that I couldn't keep standing. There are some cracks in the streets nearby, and water was flowing out of them.

I'm safe, but according to the news I saw today, 200-300 people were found dead at some seaside, which is in northeast Japan.

I'm still experiencing strong aftershocks, and I had to wake up countless times last night because of that.

Anyways, I hope people trapped in the rubbles will be rescued soon, and that the death toll won't rise anymore.

Take a look at the video below. It will give you an idea as to what happened yesterday.

Breakfast at COCO'S

I didn't intend this, but I often end up making similar posts during the same period. As I told before I have breakfast at home usually, but toward the end of a Japanese fiscal year I tend to have things to do in the morning. So I dropped by a restaurant on my way to a city hall. 

As I introduced before there are lots of restaurants in my area that belong to a chain "COCO'S". This COCO'S has been around since I was very small. 

I'd say people who have breakfast at restaurants are very few. Who'd like to wake up early in the morning on weekends and put on clothes and go out in the winter? But as I like tranquility, I could have a meal peacefully.

The breakfast was in a buffet style, so I could have put any amount of foods on my dish. I think you should have had breakfast at a hotel, and this seemed to be the same as it. I ate so much in order to skip lunch on the day.