Um...There's a Typhoon Too.

After checking several news websites, it appears that Hurricane Ike is getting ready to knock Texas back to the stone age. Every site I saw (NY Times, Chicago Tribune, CNN, BBC) were just going on and on about the day after tomorrow in the Gulf this weekend. I can't say I blame them for the bleak outlooks though after effing up on Katrina so bad but that's another story...

My question is, why is no one talking about Typhoon Sinlaku??? That's because no one knows about Typhoon Sinlaku. After reading about the front page news of Hurricane Ike and how terrible it will be (and I'm not downplaying it at all, I hope all the folks in Texas will be alright), I couldn't find a single story about Typhoon Sinlaku. Not a single one on any of the "World News" sites. Huh???

You're telling me CNN and BBC aren't even reporting on a storm almost as big as Ike and just as powerful as Ike (Sinlaku would be a Category 3 if they used that system)??? That doesn't seem right. I can even find a story about Ike on the Taipei Times almost as quickly as our on typhoon. Sadly, Sinlaku could actually be "The Storm of the Century" and I'm not sure a thing would change in the news.

Though it saddens me that the news about my new homeland is so second rate that it doesn't even warrant a brief online story, I will relay what I know here on ayj. Typhoon Sinlaku is going to hit northern Taiwan tonight/Saturday morning (Taipei is in the north btw). It's big, it's powerful, and it's moving slowly (not a good combo). Classes were canceled tonight. The city is shut down at least for Saturday and probably Sunday. And my first Moon Festival, on Sunday, is completely ruined.

But not to worry. I plan to hole up in my apartment where my roommate Matt and I will have a Die Hard marathon (assuming we still have power since the lights are already flickering). If not, I've got plenty of homework to grade (just as fun!)

Maybe I'm being too dramatic, but this is just another "eye-opener moment" for me about how the world works now that I'm out of my comfort zone. There's America. And then there's the rest of the world.