What do you like to do while riding in a train?  Look out the window?  Read?

I like to do both.

Recently I took a train ride, so I read about the recent earthquake damage in Kyushu in the children’s newspaper. (Kodomo Asahi Shinbun)

This says that over forty people were killed.  (This number may be higher now.  I’m not sure.)

This article says the bullet train derailed during one of the earthquakes (presumably the first large one.)  Nobody was killed, fortunately, and I have since heard on the television news that the bullet train is now running properly again.

This explains the main plates.  As you can see in the illustration of Japan, there are four plates moving in different directions.

Underneath that illustration, there is a graph which tells the major earthquakes in Japan in recent years.  I’ll explain the graph:

1995  Magnitude 7.3  Kobe:  You probably weren’t born yet, but in 1995, there was a major earthquake in the area of Kobe City.  Lots of people were killed.

2004  Magnitude 6.8 Niigata:  Then in 2004, there was a strong earthquake in the Niigata Prefecture area.

2011 Magnitude 9.0  Tohoku:  You probably remember the next one:  In 2011, there was a huge earthquake off the coast of Japan which resulted in a devastating tsunami.

2016  Magnitude 6.5  Kyushu:  And then finally, the recent earthquakes in Kyushu.  They actually had two major earthquakes.  The second was more than Magnitude 7, I believe.

Do you live in an area with earthquakes?  It’s scary, isn’t it.

All Japanese live with the knowledge that there is a possibility of an earthquake at any time.   They combat their fears by preparation:  strong buildings and other structures, emergency supplies, drills, emergency plans, and so on.    They want to be prepared when the next one hits.

And then also in Japan,  there is a bit of “Shikata ga nai…..”  That means “It can’t be helped….”

Whatever will happen—–will happen.

We all know that a major earthquake happened here in northern Japan five years ago.  Now the other end of Japan is getting a beating!

A major earthquake struck on Thursday evening on April 14th, 2016 in the southern part of Japan.   Its epicenter was in Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu.   And since then poor Kyushu has been getting battered by earthquakes.

This illustration shows the island of Kyushu.

Yep, that’s it.

This is all of Japan.  Kyushu is that purple part in the southwest region.

Not only did they suffer that first major earthquake, but they have been reeling from aftershocks in Kyushu, and have had more major earthquakes.

We also had many aftershocks after our Tohoku earthquakes.  At the beginning there was one every few minutes.   I could hear the vibrations before they arrived, they were so strong.  They sounded like a train.  I would say to my husband, “Earthquake coming!  I can hear it.”   And then the house would shake.

The earthquakes that were aftershocks of 3/11 lasted more than a year, getting less and less frequent.  It’s hard to know when they finally petered out, but I think it was about two or three years later.   So poor people of Kyushu!   I know what they are going through.

Even poor Kumamoto castle has collapsed partially!  People have been killed, roads have been destroyed, and in general its just a tough time down there.

(And then meanwhile, if that wasn’t enough, poor Ecuador across the Pacific Ocean also is stricken by its own major earthquake!)

Poor Ecuador!

Poor Kyushu!

Let’s remember people in need all over the world.

The free illustrations come from http://www.irasutoya.com.  Thank you so much, irasutoya.  I couldn’t have illustrated this post without you.

It is “hanami” season here in northern Japan.  Hanami is when the cherry blossoms are blooming.  So let’s go to our local park and look around.

Do you have cherry blossom trees where you live?  In Japan, they make people want to party!

Oh, and now we are at the public library.  How did we end up there?  Well, we might as well read while we are here.

Books about cherry blossoms!

Cherry blossom viewing is a very old tradition in Japan.  It’s a deep part of  Japanese culture.

After the earthquake in March of 2011, not as many people wanted to view the cherry blossoms in Fukushima.  But they still bloomed.  Year after year, in good times, in bad times…  Springtime will always be the season of cherry blossoms in Japan!

Our kids’ museum here in Fukushima City had a fun exhibit!  It was an exhibit of movies  of “World Masterpieces Theater” from Nippon Animation!

“What????”  (You are probably saying.)  “I only know of Ghibli!  You mean there is ANOTHER great Japanese animation studio?”

There sure is!  The focus of this particular studio is remakes of western classic books.  So no geisha in these movies!  No samurai!  No ninja, either!

These Japanese movies have never been translated to English (as far as I am aware) so that may be why, if you have never seen them before.   However, they are extremely famous in Japan.

Let’s see if you are familiar with the stories in some of the movies!

An American book with a racoon….hmmmmm.  The story line is that an American boy finds a racoon that he takes care of.

Never heard of it?  It’s so famous in Japan!

Rascal by Sterling North

This is an Italian classic book.  No, I had never heard of it, either!

It is called Cuore.  I think that means “heart.”

It is by Edmondo de Amicis.

If you are Canadian, this one is easy!

She’s a redheaded orphan named Anne of Green Gables.

This very famous book is by L.M.Montgomery.

An American classic about a mischievous boy and his even more mischievous pal named Huck Finn.

That’s right!  It’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.

This story will make you cry.  It’s set in Belgium.

It’s A Dog of Flanders by Ouida.

Another photo of the dog of Flanders and his boy.  Oh, I need a hankie just thinking about this book!

DVD’s of the movies.

Yeah, Rascal is a big deal in Japan!

Our library had a special exhibit of the books from the World Masterpieces Theater.

You may be wondering:  Do Japanese people know western classics?

Yes, they do.  I am a library volunteer, and trust me when I say that the western classics (and many other books besides) have been translated into Japanese.

Just like in America, some people sit down and read these books, and some people don’t actually read them–but do have a passing familiarity with the stories in the books.

And of course, they are included in school as great works to study.

So there you have it!

Let’s read great books from literature from now on!  Okay?

It’s spring!  In western countries, Easter and Passover were just celebrated.  However, Japan has few Christian and Jewish people so those festivals are not celebrated as much in Japan.  Japanese people have their own holidays.

Easter is starting to creep in….a bit.  I shot these photos in Tokyo, but these sorts of chocolates are still extremely rare in Japan.  (And expensive!  Each one is approximately fifteen American dollars.)

This is more my budget!  But still gourmet.

With these chocolates, you can open the window and read the Japanese.

It says:  Usagi wa haru no shisya.

Usagi=Rabbit

Haru=spring

Shisya=messenger

Can you figure out what it says?  (scroll down for answer.)

The Japanese says:  The rabbit is spring’s messenger.

119?  Why 119?

That’s the phone number for emergency numbers in Japan.

After the earthquake of March, 2011, there was help from lots of places.  Ambulances and medical staff worked hard!  Thank you so much, medical people.  We appreciate you!

So did the fire fighters!  I didn’t see any fires, but they were still busy helping people out.  Thank you so much, fire fighters.  We appreciate you!

Oh, cool!   Japanese manhole covers are often really neat.  So look down and check out your nearest manhole cover.

The Japanese military is not supposed to be aggressive and boss people around and get into wars.  That’s because they did too much of that in the years prior to World War II and the American military came in and said, “Cut it out!”  And they did.

Japanese has a military now that is meant only for self-defense.   And it also helps Japanese citizens in time of emergency.  The Japanese military was a huge help, especially to the victims of the tsunami.  Thank you so much, Japanese military!  We appreciate you!

Thanks for all your hard work.  Arigato gozaimashita!

Hi, everybody!

I live in Fukushima City.  However, there is a larger city in Fukushima Prefecture.  It’s called Koriyama City.  Last weekend, I went there.  Let’s take a look!

Koriyama City is smack dab in the middle of Fukushima Prefecture.  That makes it a great hub for travelling to other spots in the prefecture.

Welcome to Koriyama!  This is the train station.

That bus is going down the street to the train station.

That’s the train station at the end of the street.

It’s a nice city.  Not too crowded!

It has a wonderful bookstore.  I love books so I always stop in and look at the books in English–and buy some!

Did you enjoy your visit to Koriyama City?

We’ll come back again.  See you, Koriyama!

According to the Yomiuri Junior High Newspaper:

15, 894 people were killed due to the Japanese earthquake that occured on March 11, 2011.

2,562 people’s whereabouts are still unknown.

17,4000 people are refugees who are displaced.

As far as deaths go, Miyagi Prefecture was the worst hit.  (It was also closest to the epicenter.)  Next worst hit in regards to deaths was Iwate Prefecture.   And then third was Fukushima Prefecture.

Yesterday I went to the memorial service in downtown Fukushima Prefecture, so I will show the photos from that:

They were setting up candles when I arrived in the afternoon.  That candle in the front has the Japanese flag and says “Ganbarou Nihon”

Ganbarou=”Let’s hang in there!”

Nihon=”Japan”

That’s me with the mascot of Fukushima Prefecture, a peach.

The candles say 3.11 because the earthquake occured on March 11 (five years ago.)

Such pretty candles.  I spent a long time admiring them.  The one in purple says

Ganbarou=”Let’s hang in there”

Fukushima=”Fukushima”

Faito=”Fight”

The local Catholic girls’ high school created this wooden tree.  In the background, various high school students are singing a somber, yet beautiful, song to remember the tragedy.

So cute!  I wanted to make one.  There was a table with markers, and anybody could decorate a candle holder for free.

This is mine!  At the bottom, it says “Fukushima” but I ran out of room.  I think I should have lined it with a darker marker to make it show up better.  On the other side I wrote, “PEACE.”

I spy an akabeko!  That is the red creature on the second candle from the front.

Dressed up like Fukushimers of olden times!  So pretty!

I live in downtown Fukushima City, and every year there is a memorial in the town square.  At 2:46–the exact moment of the quake itself–there is a minute of silent prayer.  These photos show the town square last year during the afternoon.

They set up many, many candles.  That red creature is an “Akabeko,” one of the symbols of Fukushima Prefecture.

It is impossible for me to get this entirely in the photo but the last photo says, “Fukushima” in Japanese.

ふくしま

ふ FU

く KU

し SHI

ま MA

We love Fukushima!

Plum Blossoms are blooming in Fukushima City!  Spring is here.

What did one plum blossom say to the other plum blossom?

I don’t know.  I plumb forgot.

Quiz time!  What is that white object in the distance?   On the right side at the bottom?  It is sort of bullet shaped.

Do you know what it is?

It’s part of life now here in Fukushima City

Can you guess?

It’s a radiation detector.

Radiation detector are located at public areas like parks and schools and let you know that day’s current radiation.

What did one radiation detector say to the other radiation detector?

Nothing.  Because they’re not funny.