In Songda's Wake

Here are some photos (click to view them larger) and stories from the day after Super Typhoon Songda. It was certainly the strongest natural force I had ever personally encountered. Hopefully the worst I ever will. 

The storm was so loud on Saturday night that it was impossible for me to fall asleep in my room next to the rattling glass windows. To solve that problem, I took the futon and slept on the kitchen floor. It was still unbelievable loud in there, but not as terrifying. It was kind of like camping. 

The next morning, I woke up to partially blue skies and birds singing happily.  

See the bird?

At that point, I'd been stuck in my apartment for about a million years, so I had to get out. Since I still didn't have a car, I decided a bike ride would suit me just fine. 

I set out and immediately started to note the damage the typhoon had caused.  

My how the mighty have fallen. 

Repairmen were out first thing in the morning to work on this roof. 

It was no match for those extreme winds. 

 About halfway through the ride, Wang joined me on her bike. 

My biking companion and coworker, Miss Wang. :)

Wang's door had only a small crack before the storm. 

My favorite walking/biking path was completely inaccessible. 

Trees weren't the only casualties, either.  I saw more dead birds than I care to count, but I won't post pictures of that here. Heh. 

I wonder why the power is out... 

 After taking a slight detour around all the blocked roads and paths, we finally arrived at Mibaru Beach. 

It looks nice without any boats in the water, huh?

 The whole area had lost power so it was nearly impossible to find something to drink. Of course the vending machines don't work when the power's out! But we got to watch the beach stuff put some of the boats back in the sea, and we eventually found a grocery store which would sell us luke-warm cola. Ahhh... refreshing. 

 At the end of the bike ride, Wang cooked me some delicious yakisoba (fried noodles). I still didn't have power at my apartment. So I was happy to accept her generosity. ;)  

 My power was eventually restored but I was out enjoying the post-typhoon weather (more about that later), so I didn't notice until after 10 p.m. I was actually pretty lucky to get power the next day! The students in the dorms had no power AND no water for two days! My poor, stinky students.