shaker

Yesterday I experienced my first real earthquake. There had been a tiny aftershock earlier this year but this was the first I could really feel. It occurred in the Sea of Japan near Ishikawa prefecture and killed one person, injured 170. I was at a friends house at the time and it was an interesting sensation. His light (a chandelier type) started swaying wildly and then the whole house was swaying slightly. It was not so serious that anything fell but the building strangely felt like it was made of jelly. There were a few aftershocks that I felt later that night, as well. It was a pretty interesting experience somewhat like a carnival ride. I feel slightly bad saying that because a person died but having lived in the middle of a tectonic plate my whole life I have never experienced anything of the sort. Quite a few building were destroyed and some roads were cracked in Ishikawa. Ishikawa is approximately 250 km away from Niigata.