There’s many things to see and do in Japan, but recently it’s not always safe to do so. It’s not a crime wave keeping us in, it’s the weather. Or rather, the things in the air that are keeping us in. Cedar pollen causes many allergies here so the news often shows the expected levels for the day. When pollen levels are high, you should wear a mask and probably don’t want to hang your clothes outside. More than this, however, is the influence of China. Yellow sand gets picked up in the air and travels all the way here causing yellowed skies and sand to appear all over your car. Additionally, the air pollution is getting so bad in China, that it’s affecting whether it’s safe to breath the air here. In particular are the amount of particulates in the air that a mask cannot protect your from. Nagasaki now has monitors for this type pollution, generally referred as ‘2.5’. When levels are too high, it’s not safe to breathe the outside air and the skies appear covered in a fog. Levels have not reached those levels yet here, but they have in Kumamoto. It’ll be on a matter of time before we’ll be trapped in our houses.