Jishin-yoi, but life goes on in Tokyo
Apr 13, 2011 12:13:50 GMT
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2011 12:13:50 GMT
Jishin-yoi is a word that a lot of foreign residents in Japan have learned in the past month, and many of them have added it to their common vocabulary. Jishin-yoi is earthquake sickness, just like seasickness or airsickness.
Le Monde published some of the messages it has received from French people living in Tokyo, giving news of their post-earthquake lives, and I thought some of the observations were really interesting.
In Tokyo, we are very lucky. The buildings are standing, the electricity doesn’t go off much and most food is still available at the supermarket except for mineral water and yogurt. There is a little automatic jingle on radio and television that gives an earthquake alert upon detecting the first little vibrations. Ten seconds later, the earthquake starts, the lights swing from the ceiling and the building groans. I find myself looking at the ceiling light all day, or for ripples in my glass of water. – Catherine A.
I still sleep with my passport in my pocket, a whistle for the rescue dogs, a roll of banknotes and my cell phone. Nothing has changed in Tokyo except that the streets are dark at night. You can’t see anything, but it reminds you that the danger is invisible anyway. I have broken with Japanese custom and sleep with a pair of shoes next to my bed. – Patrick L.
I have lived in Japan for 6 years and have loved it. But now I am unemployed because I am a tour guide for French groups. All of the trips have been cancelled so I have absolutely no work. The French don’t even trust the food in Japanese restaurants in France anymore. They are participating in the decline of the Japanese economy. – Olivier S.
Tokyo was a city of light even brighter than New York, and now it has turned into a dull provincial town with no joie de vivre or relaxation. The foreigners have disappeared like melting snow and many friends have left, particularly Franco-Japanese couples. People are not buying things as before; they think of the people who have lost everything and feel it would be indecent to go on living like before the earthquake. Nobody is sure how long it will take to get over it. – Mathieu G.
The aftershocks keep coming, one after another. First, on the train this morning, which stopped for a couple of minutes, then at a meeting this afternoon. My colleague got a phone call a few seconds before the tremors reached us. Everybody sat still and silent for a few moments as though we were expecting bombs to start dropping and exploding. I continued my presentation even though some of the tremors were quite violent. That’s when I realized that my seismic stress threshold has risen several degrees. There is danger in not feeling in danger anymore. – Louis
There were three big aftershocks in 24 hours, but the city is disquieting in other ways, such as the subway stations with reduced lighting or none of the escalators working to save electricity. The giant screens of Shinjuku are dark. But what struck me the most was how rare foreigners have become. I arrived at Narita last Friday and there was nobody in the immigration line instead of the usual 20 minute wait. The customers officers seemed to show respect for foreigners who dared to come to Japan. – Jacques J.
I’ve been living in Japan for 9 years, 3 of them in Tokyo. I live on the 5th floor of a building that is more than 30 years old, so we feel every tremor, even the small ones. In one month, we have had 960 tremors. The week after the earthquake, we had to leave the apartment because there was a big crack in the wall and major aftershocks were expected. When we came back, the wall was already repaired and we went back to work. The subway and trains are operating normally, but we have been told to cut down on electricity and there are shortages in the supermarkets: milk, water, rice and things made from soy milk. The school where I work has revamped its emergency procedures, and the children are well prepared for anything that can happen. – Mickaël N.
Le Monde published some of the messages it has received from French people living in Tokyo, giving news of their post-earthquake lives, and I thought some of the observations were really interesting.
In Tokyo, we are very lucky. The buildings are standing, the electricity doesn’t go off much and most food is still available at the supermarket except for mineral water and yogurt. There is a little automatic jingle on radio and television that gives an earthquake alert upon detecting the first little vibrations. Ten seconds later, the earthquake starts, the lights swing from the ceiling and the building groans. I find myself looking at the ceiling light all day, or for ripples in my glass of water. – Catherine A.
I still sleep with my passport in my pocket, a whistle for the rescue dogs, a roll of banknotes and my cell phone. Nothing has changed in Tokyo except that the streets are dark at night. You can’t see anything, but it reminds you that the danger is invisible anyway. I have broken with Japanese custom and sleep with a pair of shoes next to my bed. – Patrick L.
I have lived in Japan for 6 years and have loved it. But now I am unemployed because I am a tour guide for French groups. All of the trips have been cancelled so I have absolutely no work. The French don’t even trust the food in Japanese restaurants in France anymore. They are participating in the decline of the Japanese economy. – Olivier S.
Tokyo was a city of light even brighter than New York, and now it has turned into a dull provincial town with no joie de vivre or relaxation. The foreigners have disappeared like melting snow and many friends have left, particularly Franco-Japanese couples. People are not buying things as before; they think of the people who have lost everything and feel it would be indecent to go on living like before the earthquake. Nobody is sure how long it will take to get over it. – Mathieu G.
The aftershocks keep coming, one after another. First, on the train this morning, which stopped for a couple of minutes, then at a meeting this afternoon. My colleague got a phone call a few seconds before the tremors reached us. Everybody sat still and silent for a few moments as though we were expecting bombs to start dropping and exploding. I continued my presentation even though some of the tremors were quite violent. That’s when I realized that my seismic stress threshold has risen several degrees. There is danger in not feeling in danger anymore. – Louis
There were three big aftershocks in 24 hours, but the city is disquieting in other ways, such as the subway stations with reduced lighting or none of the escalators working to save electricity. The giant screens of Shinjuku are dark. But what struck me the most was how rare foreigners have become. I arrived at Narita last Friday and there was nobody in the immigration line instead of the usual 20 minute wait. The customers officers seemed to show respect for foreigners who dared to come to Japan. – Jacques J.
I’ve been living in Japan for 9 years, 3 of them in Tokyo. I live on the 5th floor of a building that is more than 30 years old, so we feel every tremor, even the small ones. In one month, we have had 960 tremors. The week after the earthquake, we had to leave the apartment because there was a big crack in the wall and major aftershocks were expected. When we came back, the wall was already repaired and we went back to work. The subway and trains are operating normally, but we have been told to cut down on electricity and there are shortages in the supermarkets: milk, water, rice and things made from soy milk. The school where I work has revamped its emergency procedures, and the children are well prepared for anything that can happen. – Mickaël N.
