日曜日, 3月 29 2020
Japan Coronavirus update 2020/03/29 11:14AM
At the beginning of the week, compared to the rest of the world, Japan seemed normal apart from the lack of masks and botty paper. Folks were out n about cherry blossom viewing taking it easy on boat cruises down Meguro river.
Interviews with folks on the streets came with replies like “I heard that there is less chance to catch it if I’m outdoors” and “Well if we go partying then we can rid ourselves of the virus.” The most interesting of replies were “well if I get it then so what?”
Cafes are still filled with people and tables are so close to each other that one cant really practice social distancing.
But then the cases of infected started to go up and the Tokyo governor mentioned the possibility of a Tokyo lockdown. That night, the supermarkets were emptied out from panic buying.
CBS apparently reported that Tokyo has already gone into lockdown - this is not true. The governor of Tokyo and surrounding prefectures have requested that folks don’t go out but has not ordered people not to go out. Not yet anyway.
Earlier this week, 10 people arrived on a plane from overseas but airport authorities forgot to tell those who arrived to self quarantine.
The number of affected in Japan seem low compared to the rest of the world - not sure why but one of the reasons could be due to the fact that you cant even get tested for covid-19. Many folks I know with symptoms were turned away from clinics as they were unable or unwilling to give tests.
One of these photos is of our local supermarket yesterday of people queuing to get in to buy what remains on the shelves.
We are still shipping as usual but processing a very large amount of orders. Not sure whether its panic buying, folks buying Smart Dolls from cash they would have spent at canceled events or just the need to have a companion at home to keep calm. As we enter April we still plan to launch new Smart Dolls and products as planned.
As I write this, its begun to snow heavy in Tokyo and the snow has begin to settle - perhaps this will keep folks at home. I bet Animal Crossing has contributed a fair bit to keep folks at home though. #coronavirus #japan #tokyo