Back to Blighty

Less than a week before I last left home, I'm back in England.

To avoid the travel disruptions to the airport, me and Ina set off the afternoon before we were due to fly. We caught a limousine bus (not as posh as it sounds) from the Hyatt Regent Hotel (posher than it sounds). When we arrived the hotel chaps couldn't do enough for us. We sat beneath 3 of the biggest chandeliers I've ever seen (four cables per chandelier, metal bars spacing them apart, plus ropes tied to the walls to stop them swinging, we noted with relief) before getting the bus.

At the airport we borrowed sleeping bags from the info desk, found some padded benches near arrivals to lie on and tried to get some sleep. There were quite a few people around us with the same idea, camping in the airport, though not everyone had sleep in mind. Ina got very frustrated at a pair who talked at full volume 'till 5am despite being surrounded by people and families trying to sleep.

Anyway. 7am and chaos descended on the airport, hundreds of people queuing for either the ANA check in or for the tickets counter, I couldn't tell. We weren't involved in any big queues so that was fine. We checked in, went through security (a bit of a wait for Ina's re-entry permit) then flew home with no problems at all.

So now I'm home, on the day that the FCO finally advises Brits to think about leaving Tokyo. A few of my fellow exchange students have said on facebook they won't be returning - either their own decision or enforced by their home university. My own situation hangs in the balance - when I packed my suitcase, I did so with the knowledge I might never come back, so I packed everything irreplaceable or that I needed, but I left a lot behind not to mention there are friends I didn't have a chance to properly say good bye to.

So, I'm in a limbo at the minute. A week ago I thought I'd be sunning myself in Ishigaki, and now I've had to flee the country and I'm unsure whether I'll ever return. My parents still have their (rearranged from December) trip to Japan in about a month's time which is uncertain too. And the cherry on the cake is Dad's dropped me in it by contacting the local paper who have basically reprinted one of my blog entries and one of the worst photos taken of me. Thanks Dad.

Change of plan

News:

• On Wednesday I will be returning to the UK
• We are still having aftershocks over 6 magnitude
• I'm lucky I already have my re-entry permit - apparently queues at the immigration office were down the stairs, out the door and down the street i.e. several hundred people long.
• A one way ticket Tokyo-London = ~£1,200-£2,000
• A return ticket Tokyo-London, London-Tokyo = £800. Yes, really.
• The shops are either not getting deliveries or people really are panic buying. There is still plenty of fresh food to be bought but bottled water, cup noodles, onigiri, bread, milk and toilet paper are sold out in many shops.
• Blackouts are not affecting central Tokyo but train services have been reduced in expectation of the power cuts.
• September 2010 - April 2011 I will have been in the air for 84 hours and travelled ~42,000miles, not to mention the 2+ hours of travelling on either side of those long distance flights. Plus, I don't sleep on planes.
• Thank you to everyone who has been asking if I am okay or contacting James or my parents and asking after me. I feel very loved. I have been so lucky and my thoughts are with those who were not so.

Today I was meant to travel to Ishigaki, Okinawa (2,000km south west from Tokyo, near Taiwan) for a nice tropical holiday but instead me and Jessi have decided to (at least) postpone the trip until the Tuesday, by which time we should know more information. Neither of us was comfortable with travelling during the uncertainty, nor leaving behind the infrastructure and safety in Tokyo, plus the weather down there is crap. Its going to rain for the next week :(

So we've tried to ring the airline to rearrange the flights, as their website advises, but one phone number is 'invalid' and the other is so busy we can't get through. Worrying. I also emailed our accommodation in Ishigaki yesterday asking for advice if we should travel and if they had been affected, to no reply.

A few of my friends have been panicking and leaving the country. As I said in my last blog, I heard that Austrian and/or German embassies had advised that their citizens leave the country. I now hear the German embassy advises that Tokyo is safe. The British Embassy advises that we shouldn't make unessential journeys to Tokyo or north of Tokyo, but no advice about travelling elsewhere. I have friends who are scrambling out of the country, either back to Europe or just to neighbouring countries like Taiwan or South Korea. This is another part of the reason I want to stay in Tokyo - if I should need to get out, Tokyo is surely the best place to be...? (Edit: Nicole has told me the Swiss embassy website now says for residents in Tokyo to consider if their prescence in Japan is necessary and, if not, to consider leaving the country.)

All in all, though, I'm doing fine. I'm unhurt, I have food, water, electricity, even internet and I feel lucky for that. And I am so so thankful for Tokyo's strict planning regulations, they have saved countless lives, my building and all of those I've seen in our neighbourhood are undamaged. 

What often goes unreported in the news are the aftershocks we are experiencing. The big earthquake was BIG, between 8 and 9 on the richter scale, which was felt as 5-6 in Tokyo (apparently). Since Friday there has been 228 aftershocks (in fact we're having one as I type, edit: turns out that was a 6.2 and nearer to Tokyo), many over 6 , by comparison the Christchurch earthquake was 6.3. Big stuff. (check out this map of aftershocks )

Anyway, I'll stop pretending like I understand tectonics, or geography, or nuclear science. I'll keep this blog up dated with what I'm up to or any news I get. Until this all either escalates or blows over, we just have the sit tight, get in provisions, and not panic. My new mantra: don't panic.

Earthquake aftermath

The quake was just under a day ago and the aftershocks seem to have died down just about. The last strong one I felt woke me up at about 4.30am and was followed by 2 earthquake alarms from my phone which meant I couldn't get back to sleep for worry.

Since the quake happened I've been watching a combination of BBC news, NHK news, twitter, the Japan meteorological website and the British consulate website as to what to do. As the details of the effects of the earthquake spread we're just shocked by the devastation. Not only for the people dead or missing, but now everyone is very concerned about the nuclear issue.

Rumours are abound and no one really seems to know anything - I'm meant to be flying to Ishigaki, Okinawa tomorrow but, not only does it seem insensitive to go on holiday during a national emergency, but I'm learning that, apparently, the Austrian embassy has advised Valentina to evacuate out of the country. I'm getting more and more alarmed by the situation and I don't know what to do. To make it worse it's the middle of Friday night so I can't contact family or friends (without scaring them to death, no one likes middle of the night phonecalls ) nor my university for advice. I guess all we can do is sit tight, watch the news, and stay calm.

Earthquake

Today there was a massive earthquake about 250 miles north of Tokyo, it was 8.8 at the epicenter and about 6 in Tokyo. I'm completely fine, just a bit shaken (if you'll excuse the pun). 

I hadn't really eaten today apart from breakfast so at about 3 I went to my local supermarket to grab some food. I was looking at the shelf and I felt a bit woozy and dizzy and I thought I was going to faint from not having eaten, then I realised it was the ground shaking, not me. None of the customers or staff really knew what to do, there were no desks to hide under or doorways to stand in, so we just stood there looking alarmed, one woman held a plastic shopping basket over her head. 

I wasn't sure if you're meant to stay inside or go outside - I don't think there's any real advice apart from try and get away from buildings into an open area which is impossible in Tokyo. In the supermarket stuff was falling off the shelves, all the signs were swaying and I nearly fell over at one point. It was a really odd sensation, like being on a boat but without the rhythm and quite unsettling.

It carried on for about 3-5 minutes, it felt like a long time. Then it was over, no one knew what to do - whether to carry on or to stop and go outside. I paid for my stuff and went back to the dorm. For the next hour there were several very strong aftershocks, and a constant wobbling. Me and some friends bumped into each other and no one really knew what to do so we stood around talking until the tremors stopped. Now, about an hour after it, there's the odd rumble.

There has apparently been a tsunami and there are some buildings in Tokyo on fire. I'm thankful to be in a modern building and safe...