CCP Virus or Heat stroke - Which is the lesser of two evils?

 https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20220627/p2g/00m/0na/038000c

To be honest, I wasn't even aware of this. I do watch the news on TV every morning before work, and even read up on Japanese news online. The fact that I didn't even know of the government's push to (very slowly) ease up on mask wearing, especially with this hot weather lately, is a demonstration of the government's ineffectiveness in their getting this message out to the people. There are already a number of cases of people (especially children) suffering form heatstroke, because it has now become so ingrained in Japan to wear masks no matter what - and the whole group mentality of Japanese society in general - that people won't take off their masks while out for fear of being called out on it or inconveniencing others.

I can only just imagine the government realising their efforts to get everyone to wear masks has backfired:

As I said earlier, the weather has been incredibly hot lately. Not only because it's summer, but it's because the rainy season (梅雨 tsuyu) ended earlier than expected - and the news was making mention of this recently too. 

Furthermore, I've recently been given the orders to work out of town again (won't disclose the nature of the work or where, so I don't inadvertently give away my employer or me). Walking outside to and from has been really rough - so bad, that for the first time, I actually have been taking my mask off while walking outside. Furthermore, I'm considering getting a small umbrella to protect me from the sun, since my commutes while out of town don't have much shade the moment I step out of the train.  I will be working out of town until the end of the month, but fortunately, recent progress in my job has meant that this will (hopefully) be the last time I'll be working out of town.. at least in this particular area anyway. 

Japan reopening to foreign tourists from June 2022

 I am a little late on this news, since it was announced a few days ago, but it's still pretty important nonetheless.

Following up from my previous entry about Japan considering letting in foreign tourists, Japan has confirmed that the country will slowly begin allowing foreign tourists in starting from June 10. As I had also mentioned, 7 people from the US arrived in Japan as part of the first trials of their controlled group tours, with two different itineraries set up so far. The government is obviously starting small to see what needs to be done in the event that any one in these tour groups catches the CCP virus. 
Just as a reminder though, tourists will not have free reign over where they will go and what they will do. At least, not yet anyway, and some people have drawn parallels with North Korea's controlled tours - though the reasons are completely different: One being to control the spread of the CCP virus, and the other being a means to not highlight its country in any undesirable light, despite the truth of said country being pretty much common knowledge.

Regardless of this "packaged tour" approach, Japan will be classifying countries/regions in to three categories (blue, yellow, red), with blue being the lowest risk (and currently comprised of 98 countries in this category), and red being the highest risk. 

Finally, those coming from overseas will be expected to follow Japan's mask wearing policy. Many other countries have dropped their mask mandates, but Japan still hasn't. As part of the country's CCP virus countermeasures, overseas visitors will have to wear masks. I personally have no problem with this, but I can see a lot of people continue to stay from Japan because of this mask mandate. 

While a complete lift of restrictions entering the country isn't on the cards yet, this is a good start. While not a perfect solution, I can only hope that the Japanese government will make necessary adjustments as overseas tourists slowly start coming back to visit Japan again. 

The Abenomask: Mini review

While I have yet to receive mine, my girlfriend had already received her 2 free reusable cloth masks from the government (a.k.a the Abenomask) when she recently went to Tokyo for an appointment.

 As some may already be aware, there have been problems with these masks, including dirty masks being delivered. Originally, these free masks were in a response in to the shortage of masks available due to the CCP virus. Well, it seems that lately, face masks are slowly becoming available in some parts of Japan, including in the city that I am currently in. While stock isn't back to normal levels yet, it's certainly better than a few weeks ago. But anyway, back to these free government masks.

To sum it up: These masks suck.

Firstly, you only get two. If you happen to be living by yourself, or it's just yourself and your significant other living at home, this shouldn't be a problem (keyword being shouldn't). However, if you have a family of greater than two living in your household, be prepared to starting sharing those two masks.

Another problem - even if it's just yourself or only two people living together, these face masks are tiny. Even by Japanese standards, these are tiny. For me, they barely cover my mouth and nose.

Abenomask (left) vs. Standard face mask (right)

Abenomask (left) vs. Children's size face mask (right)

While the standard and children's face masks may appear smaller that the Abenomask, keep in mind that those masks are designed in such a way that they can be used by anyone regardless of the size of your face... a one size fits all, if you will. The Abenomask, unfortunately, seems to be designed for children in mind... and/or midgets. The only one redeeming factor is that they can be put in the wash and be reused, but there are far better masks out there that can do the same thing. My girlfriend says she can't stand the smell of the masks either, and while I didn't think the smell was that strong, I only wore it for 3 seconds before taking it off. I don't think I can picture myself wearing it for extended periods. Also, I have my own reusable cloth mask that I bought from Yamada Denki, and unlike the Abenomask, it fits across my face just fine (and my nose ain't small either).

These masks feel completely half-assed. While I have no intention of using them, their small size does make them ideal for small children if you have no masks on hand, and are unable to buy any from a shop, or online, and there's nobody to borrow a mask from. In other words, only use these as an absolute last resort. Just be sure to wash them first to get rid of the smell.

P.S. Just to show you how tiny these masks are, here's Prime Minister Abe wearing one: