| MAG | UTC DATE-TIME y/m/d h:m:s | LAT deg | LON deg | DEPTH km | Region | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MAP | 5.9 | 2009/06/06 05:52:45 | 35.440 | 140.925 | 44.0 | NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN |
I have officially experienced my first earthquake! Just before 3pm the room started shaking left and right for a few seconds. At first I thought it was a large truck driving by, but then realized that I had never felt that much movement from a vehicle. I decided to put some pants on just in case it got worse, but that was about the extent of it.
As you can see above, the epicenter was off the east coast of Japan but almost directly in line Tokyo. The richter scale reading in Tokyo was in the upper 3's, felt and recorded but significant damage not likely.
I was also surprised how quiet it was. I was talking with one of the other interns and we both agreed that we had expected at least some rumbling noises or something...I blame Hollywood
Sounds awesome so far! I'm curious, how's the language situation? It sounds like at least a few people at the company speak English. Do people look at you weird or anything like that? Also, how are prices? I heard in the past that food, especially meat, is expensive in Japan.
ReplyDeleteHey Mike,
ReplyDeleteEveryone in our department speaks English, and many people in Tokyo seem to have taken some level of English classes. Communicating outside of work is still difficult, as I do not speak Japanese. I have been able to get by so far with a few basic phrases and a lot of pointing. Most restaurants have picture menus as well, so I can order food even if I am not sure what I am getting.
An average dinner is around $5 for a rice or noodle based meal. Adding meat will double the price most of the time.
I do get a few weird looks and have had my picture taken at least once, but there are quite a few foreigners in the city. I probably get more looks when I am in my suit, as most foreigners my age are just passing through the city as tourists.
-Tom
That's neat. I found that many Germans speak English especially in the cities, I even saw marketing there that had would have a German sentence with an English buzzword like 'fresh' in it, whereas it seemed that as many French speak English as Americans speak French--very little. Ah, yes, the picture menus. I ended up having to resort to those in Spain despite class, ha ha.
ReplyDeleteI figured Tokyo's a big city so you wouldn't be too strange. A friend recently returned from Malaysia and he said the whole time he was the only white guy and people were looking at him and so forth, but it sounded like he was out in the country.
How's the culture? I'd guess more formal. Thanks for sharing. Your trip sounds really cool.