Walking to Izumi Chuo

 As I passed the admin building I saw a truck that obviously belonged to a work crew, but I could not see any workers. Maybe they were inside some where. Workers, equipment, and vehicles are now a common sight where every you go. However, no matter how much they work,  it will be years, if ever, before the traces of the disaster are gone.

 This is the path along the top of the riverside levee. You can see the large crack in the pavement that was caused by the earthquakes. The first one broke it and the second large one moved the chunks relative to each other.

 Work has finally started on the Lawson's 100 building. I was surprised that the netting around the scaffolding was yellow. I have seen yellow before but it is unusual. I wonder if all the occurrences are related to the same construction company.

 This is a storage shed in front of a restaurant. I do not like it but someone must think that it is artistic.

 The Vegalta soccer team was playing a home game later in the day and the local Kentucky Fried Chicken stand dress up the Colonel for the occasion.

At Izumi Chuo, I found some damage I had not seen before. This is between the two large department stores and on the main north/south road. I was here to get a ride to my art class.

Across the street there is an izakaya, or Japanese style bar. They serve food and drinks at very reasonable prices. This one is named in the white characters on the red sign, Wara Wara, which means Laugh Laugh. Under the red sign there is a white section with a lot of writing on it. It says that for 1000 yen you can get a nomihodai, which lets you drink as much as you want for a fixed price. The drinks include beer, wine, sake, and mixed drinks, as well as a variety of non-alcoholic beverages. Usually a nomihodai has a time limit, and they typically range from just over an hour to two hours. Often you must also purchase a fixed menu of food to accompany the drinks. Typically, the bill will be between 2000 and 3000 yen per person and will use about three hours time in total. When I still drank alcohol, I frequently went to Izakaya with my friends, but now I do not go so often as it seems like a lot of money to pay for a couple of glasses of ice tea.