2. Fukushima City, Japan
Fukushima City and its surrounding prefecture has impressive mountains, lakes, beaches, onsens, feudal castles and ski resorts. However, since the tsunami disaster and nuclear meltdown on March 11, 2011, it has understandably fallen off the tourism radar. Three and a half years later, official reports say that Fukushima is now safe and sound to travel in. Beyond the no-entry zone right around the Daiichi Nuclear Plant, airborne radiation levels are supposedly well within government safety standards. However, you have to consider the source of these reports (Tepco) and their own agenda to downplay the crisis. They seem more interested in damage control to save face than actually dealing with the damage. There has been negligence, misinformation and cover-ups before and since the crisis, it’s hard to trust anything they say. You can’t see, feel or taste radiation, and its ill effects don’t necessarily manifest until 10 years down the road, so it’s easy to lull people into a false sense of security – at least for a while. There’s just so much we don’t know and the health stakes are so high. Why take the risk?
