This little piggy (flu) went to America, This little piggy (flu) went to Japan

Back in the Meiji era, before the 20th century, Japan had been closed off to the Western world. After the Meiji Restoration of 1868-1912, Japan's doors opened and have since been open. Unfortunately for Japan, those doors cannot easily be closed any longer. A staggering 200+ cases of the new H1N1 Influenza have been reported and the virus has quickly manifested itself throughout the Kansai area of Japan, which includes the cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Nara.
Never have I heard such grief, shock and troublesome among people before about a strain of an Influenza virus. It is said that the yearly Influenza kills more people than has the new N1H1 strain, however, that has not stopped the world from staying entirely cautious.
Perhaps a little too cautious, as the Japanese have been deemed, thousands of schools have been shut down and others left in panic after the strain entered Japan, supposedly through a few students studying on an exchange at Loyola Secondary High School in Oakville, Canada. It was later noted, by a teacher of mine that this school is approximately 30 minutes from Toronto. What he neglected to realize was that I am actually from Mississauga which is a mere 20 minutes drive from Oakville. But does distance really matter in this case? What bearing does me coming from Mississauga have on one catching the virus... absolutely NOTHING!
With news of the virus spreading out of the Kansai area and into the next prefecture over, the Board of Education was not taking any chances with the virus. Teachers who had visited the States were given a mandatory seven day quarantine, verifying their temperatures twice daily and reporting it to a local health clinic.
I nearly had to drown out the noise of the teachers' room, as I would constantly here these conversations: Japanese, Japanese, Japanese, INFLUENZA, Japanese, Japanese, Michael, Japanese, INFLUENZA. I just didn't want to get involved.
I've gotta hand it to them though, they do a great job at controlling the strain and taking precautions, as quarantines were quickly set up and health checks regularly administered as well.
However, I hear the Japanese have been known to overreact a little, and I will refer you to this article as evidence: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1923_Great_Kant%C5%8D_earthquake#Post-quake_massacre_against_Koreans

On a related note, the Prime Minister of Isreal has stated he wants a change in the name of Swine Flu to Mexican Flu, as trustworthiness of pork has slipped.

No April Fools

It has been too long since I last wrote- however, I assure you that the inspiration has not subsided. Rather, on the flip side, there have been so many things to write about, I just haven't been able to sit down for a moment to write about a single one of them.
So where to start...
April.
April was the month of confusion and for lack of better words- chaotic. April also took me to various places, including a couple countries and April also forged a better relationship with my family. It was also the month I was able to see them (my family), even though brief, still unforgettable.
April started with a spring break trip to Hiroshima- a city of contrasts- a city with so much life it is hard to even imagine what happened the day of August 6, 1945. Though the grim feelings are still felt, it is most definitely a place everyone should visit. That's also the place I met my friends Shigeo and Yoshi, exploring Miyajima, where the famous Tori Gate stands in the straight between the island and mainland.
April continued with my birthday, which was uniquely celebrated Japanese style with my English club and some friends. A few rounds of bowling and I was in heaven. This marks the second time my birthday had been celebrated overseas, the first being on my first trip abroad to England on a grade 12 school trip.
My birthday also brought some rather unfortunate news. With the assistance of Japanese technology my sister contacted me through email on my cell phone with word of my grandmother's passing. Within a few moments I was on the phone with my sister and within an hour I was chatting with all three of my siblings. What struck me the most was the promptness of our desire to speak to one another. Technology most definitely facilitated this, however, I never saw my family react in such a powerful way with one another as I did then. How interesting, a family member's death can bring so many emotions and closeness to a family.
This prompted my trip to Canada, for a short, yet wonderful 4 days. I had no idea one could book a flight one day and the next be on their way to the other side of the world. Though the trip took approximately 20hours each way, the trip brought something much greater, an understanding of my family as just that, a family.
I have many memories of my grandmother, many of which I would like to share in more detail another time. I will say, hands down, that I was the closest of my siblings to my grandmother, though even still, it took her death to learn so many great things about her. One thing I will take from this experience is to learn much more about a person throughout their life rather than take things for granted. This implies learning all the wonderful things about them before it's just too late. My grandmother was a caring, and more importantly giving person. She not only shoveled her own, massive drive-way, but also ours, on those bitter cold snow days. "Vichnaya Pamyat".
One more point- friends. I cannot thank you, Melanie, Sarah and Jessie more than enough for the kindness you showed me during my stay in Canada. I don't want to sound so blase, though, I really love you all and you made that moment so memorable to me. I'll never forget that.
For everyone else who came to celebrate the life of my grandmother, thank you. From Bo, Pani Marta, Dr. Jacyk, the Romans, to everyone dear to me- Shchyro Dyakuyu.
For a brief intro of the next entry, the end of April also took me to Korea. Can't wait to share that!