Create meetup in Tokyochevron_right
Select a place on the map to change the location.
I want to meet
Verified required?
want to meet at fmd_good Wildlife Reserve
want to meet at fmd_good Market Deli
explore Tokyo Guides
bar_chart Trends in Tokyo
How often do you feel Earthquakes in Tokyo?
I just moved here for a couple of months for work. I felt the quake Thursday night and was woken up this morning. Granted it wasn't much, but enough to get a foreigner nervous. Is my bed sha… Hey all,
I just moved here for a couple of months for work. I felt the quake Thursday night and was woken up this morning. Granted it wasn't much, but enough to get a foreigner nervous. Is my bed shaking twice a week kind of common or what's the deal over here?
the thursday one was a 4.2 which is actually pretty decent for tokyo proper, most of the time you get those little 2-3 shakers that feel like someone dropped a washing machine upstairs. you def just hit a weird streak, normally you'd go weeks without noticing anything
fwiw the morning one was probably from the chiba area, those tend to roll through a bit more since its further out. if youre in a newer tower the swaying feels way worse than it actually is, my friend in a 30th floor says every 3 feels like a 5 to him
one thing nobody told me when i moved here is that typhoon season actually causes more building movement than most quakes do. like the building swaying from wind feels super similar to a small tremor, scared the hell out of me my first september here
yeah you just got unlucky honestly. tokyo gets maybe 2-3 noticeable ones a month on average, thursday was a 4.2 near saitama which is decent but still nothing. the morning one was barely a 3, you prob just felt it cause you're on a higher floor or your building's older.
the real annoying thing isnt the quakes themselves but the alerts going off on your phone at 3am for a 2.8 that lasts 3 seconds. set your phone to silent overnight or turn off emergency alerts for anything under 4 if your carrier lets you. also check your building's construction year, anything built after 1981 is way more solid
You hit a busy week for sure. I've been here three years and thursday was the strongest one I've felt since a 5.2 last spring. The morning one was just a ripple from Chiba, those are common but barely register once you're used to them.
What nobody mentions is that your brain adapts fast. After about two months you stop flinching at the little ones and just pause to check if the ceiling fan is swinging. The only ones that still get my attention are the ones where you hear the building groan first, that low creaking sound before the shaking starts.
Keep a bottle of water and your passport in your work bag. Not because you need it for quakes specifically, but because that's just smart in any city and it'll make you feel more prepared. You'll be fine.
load 2 more replies
Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.