Heavy Snow Hits Tokyo and Other Areas

Above, my Ueno, Tokyo hotel with the snow-covered street Saturday (Feb. 15) morning. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Sometimes it is funny to be at the wrong place at the right time, or the wrong place at the wrong time. Whichever.

My first visit to Japan in three years had me arriving the day (February 8) that had record snowfall snarling Japan's transit system and had me sitting in a commuter train car (thankfully, it was heated) for 16 hours in Chiba Prefecture. I reached my hotel 22 hours after landing at Narita Airport.

Above, these travelers waited hours at bus stops out in the cold on Sunday, February 9 in Chiba Prefecture. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Then, a week later, more heavy snow fell in Japan on Friday, February 14 through Saturday, February 15. Luckily, I was able to get to Narita International Airport and get a flight that was actually better than the one I was ticketed for.

On Friday's snow storm, Jiji Press reported:

Tokyo, Feb. 14 (Jiji Press)--A low-pressure system traveled northeast off Japan on Friday, causing heavy snow again in various areas including Tokyo and surrounding prefectures. 

The snow disrupted public transportation in Tokyo and elsewhere, and led to injuries and changes in the schedules of public events. 

Tokyo, hit by the heaviest snow in two decades only a week ago, had 5 centimeters of snow by 7 p.m. (10 a.m. GMT) in the Otemachi business district. 

The snowfall reached 79 centimeters around Kawaguchiko lake in Yamanashi Prefecture, west of Tokyo, 54 centimeters in Kofu, the capital of Yamanashi, and 16 centimeters in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. 

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued heavy snow warnings in many prefectures including Yamanashi, Shizuoka, Nagano and Kyoto. 

It was my good fortune that the snows ended for most of the days of my vacation. Although the days were cold, I knew ahead of time what to expect and packed warm clothing.

Above, snow or no snow, this Tokyo supermarket was open for business on February 9. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

All this snow made the trip even more interesting, but I got everything I set out to do completed and had a great time anyway.