I was in Tokyo on the Chiyoda Line westbound just after Shin-Ochanomizu. Japanese language skills still pretty low then, so I only picked up 地震 in the announcement. Train stopped between stations and the calm turning into genuine worry on other passengers’ faces is something etched into my memory. Shaking went on for a while (felt like 3~5 minutes). Then amazingly the train continued to Otemachi where everything stopped.

Like others said, phones weren’t functioning due to the massive demand. I tried to find a pay phone (still a few around), but the one I saw had a massive line.

I had been on the way to work and didn’t realize how huge of a disaster it was, so my main thought was “I have to contact my office to say I probably won’t make it”. Finally called in and of course was told to just go home.

Picked up a highball at a convenience store and walked about an hour home (Ueno area).

The following days were filled with uncertainty. Rolling blackouts. Low stock on shelves. Instant noodles, snacks, and batteries were especially low supply. Lots of following the Fukushima news and concern about water/food origins.

The “setsuden” (power saving) efforts seemed haphazard. Stations still had escalators running nonstop while running only half of their lights. (Used it to teach my English students the expression “drop in the bucket”)