Archive for May, 2009

Flu quarantine in Japan

A few photos show how it is for some of the people quarantined because they happened to be sitting near H1N1-infected passengers on an airplane (quote from the Yomiuri):

A Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry official asked the man not to leave his the room, except for meals, to wear a sanitary mask and not to touch anything if he had to leave the room.

Hotel employees have been prohibited from entering the travelers’ rooms, so the man cannot get room service, he said.

He said he has to wash his clothes in the bathroom of his room. He puts used towels inside a plastic bag and leaves them outside the room to be picked up by a hotel employee, he added.

For lunch Saturday, he said he had curry rice in what appeared to be a conference room. In the room, about 15 round tables were set at intervals of about three meters apart, apparently to prevent quarantined people from coming into contact with each other and spreading the virus they may possibly be infected with, he said. He sits alone at a table to eat, he said.

For dinner that day, he said he had steak.

He was asked to take his temperature in the morning, afternoon and evening.

A doctor visited him Saturday evening and told him he showed no flu symptoms, he said.

The man said he was in an unfortunate situation, but quarantining him and the other travelers was the only way to prevent the virus from spreading.

Some schools are sending study materials to students stuck in the quarantine.

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Crown prince plays the viola

Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan, joined an amateur orchestra the other day for a performance in Ikebukuro:

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Heart-shaped watermelons in Japan

A store in Fukuoka is selling heart-shaped watermelons:

The unusual fruit is the invention of Hiroichi Kimura, a farmer from Kumamoto, and his wife. The couple said they had tried for three years to create the perfectly heart-shaped fruit, which they say symbolizes their passion for farming and their affection for each other.

Apparently they are being sold for a price 15,750 yen ($160) each.
[via JapanSoc dot com]

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Thank you for your Mother

The folks at Tokyo Disneyland are celebrating Mother’s Day by thanking us for our mothers [photo submitted by Pat]:

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Japanese girls with yaeba: cute?

A Japanese reader named Mika has written to ask how the foreign readership of this site views Japanese girls with yaeba:

I research what foreigners feel about Japanese culture.
Especially I am interested in Yaeba.

Yaeba means double teeth/crooked teeth.
As I understand, Only Japanese feel it cute.

I am Japanese girl and have Yaeba.
Japanese say to me your teeth is cute.

Please comment about Yaeba in your blog.

Those seeking more information on yaeba are asked to check this blog post in English, as well as this slide show of Japanese girls with yaeba.

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Shibazakura in Chichibu

The Asahi Shimbun’s helicopter camera gives an excellent view of the famous moss pink (shibazakura) hill at Hitsujiyama Park in Chichibu:

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