I only recall experiencing one moderate earthquake when we lived in Tokyo. I was alone in our apartment on a Saturday afternoon, sitting at the computer, when suddenly the chair I was sitting in began shaking. Then I realized the room was shaking. It lasted maybe 10-15 seconds.
It was pretty mild; nothing fell over. But what an unsettling feeling it was. So I can’t even imagine what yesterday’s 8.9 earthquake felt like, even if Tokyo wasn’t the epicenter.
My high school in the Tokyo suburbs was apparently fine. Since the train system had stopped running, they used the school’s bus system to get everyone home that they could.
Earthquakes are freaky, even when there’s no damage. Especially if it’s a mild quake, the whole thing happens quietly, which makes it even freakier, like this unseen force is doing something to you. Jesus. You think you’re in a solid building, which you think is sitting on solid ground, and then you realize that the foundation on which you’ve lived your whole life is not solid at all.
Everything beneath us is slipping and sliding.
During 9th grade we had a 6.2 or 6.5- somewhere in that range- that made an impression. But i think i remember the one you’re referring to… we had our windows open and we could hear it coming. We didn’t know what it was, but there was just this noise – not loud, more like a wave – coming across the city from the north, and we knew what was coming. I have also been following MOL- I put myself in the situation of parents looking at that, tracking the buses, and it’s just chilling. More than 8 hours on buses for some of those kids, and it sounds like very few ride the trains anymore, which I find odd.
“Freaky” is definitely the word for earthquakes… and you never know how strong they will be or long they will last. Whenever an earthquake happens I keep asking myself, “Should I get under a table now?… How about now?”