News here has been dominated for most of the last week and a half by news of the Japanese earthquake, and following nuclear scare. Apocalyptic music precedes rolling broadcasts of footage from the disaster zone, in microscopic detail, and very thorough analysis of the likely consequences to China and all else.
My host mother has been glued to this ever since it all happened. First with much shaking of the head, and expressions of amazement that only SOME of Japan was in ruins, and sympathy with Japanese people, and then with increasing worry that nuclear disaster was heading our way, fast. In fairness to her, everyone has been scaremongering, from announcements by scientists that we are not to go out if it rains*, to the French students who were commanded home by an impressively paranoid university, and we are signicantly closer to Japan than much of China. It is, however, still a good 1000 miles...
This culminated a few days ago... Despite reassurances that the radiation levels in China have not risen, at all, and perhaps helped by repeated announcements by public authorities that green tea really does not ward off the effects of radiation poisoning anyway, China briefly went salt crazy.
My ayi did too - but she made it to the supermarket just a little late. To her horror the salt was all gone by the time she got there, so she grabbed the food with the highest salt content instead - seaweed.
We all laughed at her when seaweed was served up that night. However, she still made us eat it. Just in case, she said.
* Radiated or no, rain seems even less likely. I can't remember the last time it rained here now - China really is suffering from a drought.
My host mother has been glued to this ever since it all happened. First with much shaking of the head, and expressions of amazement that only SOME of Japan was in ruins, and sympathy with Japanese people, and then with increasing worry that nuclear disaster was heading our way, fast. In fairness to her, everyone has been scaremongering, from announcements by scientists that we are not to go out if it rains*, to the French students who were commanded home by an impressively paranoid university, and we are signicantly closer to Japan than much of China. It is, however, still a good 1000 miles...
This culminated a few days ago... Despite reassurances that the radiation levels in China have not risen, at all, and perhaps helped by repeated announcements by public authorities that green tea really does not ward off the effects of radiation poisoning anyway, China briefly went salt crazy.
My ayi did too - but she made it to the supermarket just a little late. To her horror the salt was all gone by the time she got there, so she grabbed the food with the highest salt content instead - seaweed.
We all laughed at her when seaweed was served up that night. However, she still made us eat it. Just in case, she said.
* Radiated or no, rain seems even less likely. I can't remember the last time it rained here now - China really is suffering from a drought.
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