March 29 – A Few Things are Almost Like They Were Before 3/11

Like September 11, the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Tohoku are now referred to in numbers: 3/11.

The weather was nice today so I did a lot of laundry before heading to the hospital to visit mom. On the way there, I saw some more convenience stores open but many gas stations remain closed. The gas stations that are open continue to use the ticket system to allocate gas.

My neighbor told me that she drove to the gas station at 3 a.m. to line up for a ticket. Four hours later, at 7 a.m., the gas station attendants walked to each car to distribute the tickets. When the tickets are gone, the others in line are out of luck for that day. The gas station opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 4 p.m. For those whose cars do not have enough gas, they must remain in line. For those whose cars have enough gas, they can come back anytime before the station closes at 4 p.m. as they are guaranteed to get gas as long as they have a ticket.

My neighbor stayed in line because she did not have enough gas. So, she waited 6 hours in her car before the station even opened. Then, she had to wait her turn in line once it opened. What a pain! I do not want to do that. What happens if I need to go to the bathroom? I do not think they are allowing people to leave their cars in line unattended overnight like I did the last time. The stations are still limiting purchases to 3,000 or 4,000 yen per car ($30-$40). Gas prices are going up. It is about 155 yen per liter ($7.18 per gallon) which is 10 yen/liter ($0.46/gallon) more than before 3/11.

I will need gas soon though. I enjoy driving around to look for more stores opening. I have to carefully look around while driving which I know is not that safe. But what else can I do? I am by myself.

I decided to stop at mid-sized shopping center that has a grocery store, drug store, book store/CD DVD rental, electronics store, udon noodle restaurant, sushi restaurant, Mos Burger fast food, Baskin Robbins, etc. Their grocery store was open but was only selling take-out food and bread. I bought some croquette for my mom and her roommates to add to their hospital dinner. The drug store was open and I was able to buy a case of bottled water for my mom. I was very lucky because it is nearly impossible to find bottled water right now due to the Fukushima nuclear crisis. Most of the restaurants were open with shorter operating hours. The book store was still closed and it looked like electronics store will remain closed for awhile as their shop was damaged in the quake.

The number of cars on the road is increasing and is nearly what it was before 3/11. The cars lining up to get gas are causing traffic jams.

My mom is doing well. The hospital food is improving in both variety and quantity. The patients were able to shower today for the first time since the quake! They all felt so refreshed. It seems like the hospital is almost back to normal. They still do not have the natural gas turned on though but it is definitely warmer at the hospital. The hospital’s main store is open, although with many empty shelves. The cafeteria is open now too. Things are getting better.

HONOLULU Magazine’s owner, aio, is organizing a fundraiser for Tohoku University Hospital. Click here for details.