I just got back from another tour of the ‘hood. Nishiogikubo’s Seiyu—proud member of the “WAL*MART Family”—is closed. A sign on the shuttered entrance says they are closed till further notice due to the earthquake and refers shoppers to other Seiyu stores in Kichijoji and Ogikubo. What do you suppose happened? Possibly I was the last person to buy anything there before they closed. At that time, while things had fallen off shelves, I saw no signs of damage to the building itself, which, after all, the recorded announcement kept assuring us was “safe.” I would venture a guess that they were all sold out of everything, were it not for their referral of shoppers to nearby Seiyu stores.
If you hurry, maybe you can get that last set of tissue paper.
Moving on to Seijo Drugs to pick up some vitamins, I found the place crowded with shoppers and the line too long to stick around and wait in. Out back the shelves normally full of tissue and toilet paper were nearly empty. There’s a run on these items, and I passed people loaded down with them on the street.
Yesterday I had done a big shop at the Coop, but there had been no bread, bananas, strawberries or broccoli. Today too no bread, and the fruit section was empty except for a few lonely kiwis and avocados. Fresh vegies too were wiped out except a couple of bunches of celery, asparagus, and cucumbers. Milk all gone, eggs all gone, rice all gone. Shoppers were wandering around exclaiming, “But there’s nothing here!” There is still some processed packaged food left, though, and for some reason lots of fresh flowers. Signs above the empty compartments apologized for being sold out of just about everything due to the earthquake.
I then checked out Fuji Garden, right next door to the Coop, across the street from Daiso. They’ve got lots of everything there, especially in the fresh foods department. So if you want something besides kiwi and celery, pop next door for more variety. What Fuji Garden is out of, though, is milk, bread, tofu, and fresh noodles. [The Coop (Seikyo) is located at Nishiogikita 1-2, next to the railroad tracks.]
Is this just a temporary glitch in the system? Or are we really in for long-term shortages? That remains to be seen. I’ve got four and a half rolls of toilet paper at home and five box of tissues. Let’s see what happens when I run out…
Tokyo Tree 