Kumamoto International Archive

Archive of the Kumamoto International Facebook group, 2011–present.

Sales of Kumamon mascot products hit record Y128 bil after quake
Products bearing the image of "Kumamon," the black bear mascot of quake-hit Kumamoto Prefecture, racked up sales of at least…

A note from the Kumamoto international pro baseball desk (if you're anti-baseball, please stop reading here): Some watch baseball because they love the game; others, because they enjoy the atmosphere; and still others, because they want to hook up. We at the desk do not judge.
An all-avian featherbuster is set for Saturday, May 13, when the Softbank Hawks talon off against the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles - the ultimate clash of iPhones vs online shopping - at Kumamoto's beautiful Fujisakidai Stadium. The venue was once home to Kato shrine until the shrine was moved closer to the castle in the Meiji Era, but the 600-year old camphor trees ringing the stadium still provide a gorgeous foreground to a stunning view of Mt. Kimpo, particularly at sunset. Recent renovations to the stadium have pretty much (but not entirely) eliminated previous avenues for sneaking in without a ticket, according to one of our desk members; if you plan to attend, be aware that admission starts from 4,000 yen, with tickets going on sale this Saturday. More info is at the link. - William
https://wws.kab.co.jp/event/hawks2017/
KAB 熊本朝日放送

As we approach the first anniversary of the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake. The page has just passed the 3000 like mark -- more than double the number of likes before the quake. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all my partners in crime (fellow editors, that is) for their help over the past year. I started the page as a personal project but am extremely grateful that others have volunteered to help provide information in English about Kumamoto, especial in the aftermath of the earthquake. If anyone reading this would be willing to join the editorial board and donate some time to help with editing tasks on the page, please send a message to the page.
-- Kirk

"Anaba" (穴場) is a wonderful Japanese word that succinctly sums up the rather more clumsy English phrase "a good place not many people know about." From today, Kumamoto International is adding an Anaba Desk. Anyone who has lived for any length of time in Kumamoto has undoubtedly stumbled upon tiny shops that, for whatever reason - items provided, service, atmosphere, fascinating proprietors - are well worth visiting. We invite all of our readers to message us with your discoveries so that we may share them with others. You will be rewarded with recognition and KumaBit Coins.
If you're female, you can stop reading now. If you're male, you'll notice that females sometimes suggest you get your hair cut, gently at first but with greater urgency as your hirsuteness progresses. Here is my anaba suggestion for the day.
The barbershop I've patronized since coming to Kumamoto over 20 years ago used to be called El Dorado; after its owner died of old age, it moved from its ancient digs to a newer location and for some reason changed its name to "Be Happy," but they brought with them their barber chairs, the kind you father remembers from when he was a kid. Awesome barbers, but don't panic at their appearance: older, and with terrible haircuts themselves; though their sight has faded a bit, they know what you want and, having grown accustomed to my curly mop, can now handle gaijin guy hair of most any consistency. They are very thorough, shaving your neck and even the hairs off your ears with a straightedge razor. The atmosphere is very guy-friendly: NHK radio playing, conversation only at the bequest of the customer, very pragmatic. Their fee used to be 1,000 yen but was raised to 1,200 yen a few years ago. No tipping - this is Japan - but I always give them a case of Asahi before New Years.
They are located on Suizenji Ekimae Dori just off Densha Dori. Tell them the gaijin sent you and they'll probably understand. - William
Note: KumaBit Coins are something we made up and have no value.

Joe Tomei here. The KGU Green Philharmonic orchestra will be giving their 23rd annual concert on 26 Feb in the Takahashi Morio Hall on the KGU campus. We will be playing
Gluck Iphigenia in Aulis
Kabalevsky The Comedians Suite
Schumann Symphony #3 (Rhenish)
The concert is free and begins at 2pm, doors open at 1:30. If you come, please say hello to me, I'll be the old ojisan in the horn section.

Billy Bento is offering a Korean quesadilla lunch set. Visit his Facebook page - or, even better, his shop - for more details.

Spring whispers its advent with the fragrant blossoming of the Japanese plum (ume no hana 梅の花). Sturdier and sparser than the cherry, plum blossoms signal the beginning of spring, while cherries signal the end; the plum tree is also smaller and scraggly, often poking not more than a gnarled branch or two over the wall of someone's garden, yet even from these unlikely sources come the most beautiful blossoms.
In fact, the Japanese plum is more closely related to the apricot (think of the smooth-skinned plums you eat compared with the fuzzy surface of the ume). The fruit is not eaten but is often used to make umeshu (梅酒; sometimes translated as "plum wine") by steeping green plums in shōchū (焼酎). It is traditional in Japan to make umeshu, store it for so long that it is forgotten, and then finally dispose of it once realizing that no one is ever going to touch the stuff.
While visible from home gardens and at shrines, the best place to view plum blossoms is at Iida maru (飯田丸, pictured below) at the castle, where some 140 trees grow. According to this article, some of the area is still restricted, but there should nonetheless be excellent viewing and photography opportunities. Blossoms are expected to reach full bloom towards late February; one castle employee was quoted as saying, "We'd love people to come view the plum blossoms and to hasten reconstruction." - William
http://www.nishinippon.co.jp/nnp/kumamoto/article/303870
熊本城に春の兆し　紅梅咲き始める
熊本地震で被災した熊本城（熊本市中央区）の飯田丸梅園で、傷ついた天守閣を背に紅白の花が咲き始めた。立ち入り規制区域...

Heartbreaking but hopeful: stones from the castle walls are pictured below in order of what is thought to be their original locations based on size, shape, and historical photographs. Now comes the task of putting them back. - William
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0003493836
Zoom Up / Kumamoto Castle restoration progresses
KUMAMOTO — Stones of various shapes are arranged in orderly rows in a field. They are part of the stone walls of Kumamoto Castle, which is designated as a special historic site by the central government, in Chuo Ward, Kumamoto. The largest ones weigh more than a ton.

Here's something for those of you interested in teaching opportunities.
-- Kirk

A note from the Kumamoto International desk of improbable realities: There is apparently a village south of Hitoyoshi called 相良村 (Sagara Mura) which contains a location with a name containing an improbable number of "kawas" - 川辺川河川敷 (improbably pronounced "Kawabegawa Kasenjiki" - we'll report later on the difference between 川 and 河) - but that's not the point.
Mari (below left) and Koro (right - I think; let's face it: they look pretty much the same) are simply following their dream of becoming police dogs, but they both had the misfortune of being born toy poodles. While their larger canine brethren laughed at them, they trained and trained and yesterday took their test in 川辺川河川敷 which involved navigating an obstacle course and finding their handlers hidden in thick brush within 10 minutes (Mari did it in 10:30, Koro in 6:55). Toy poodle police dogs are rare in Japan, and if these two pass (results will be released in March), they'll be the first in Kumamoto and will begin work in April.
A police official said that the Kumamoto quakes have demonstrated the need for small dogs able to navigate the cramped spaces of collapsed buildings to alert their handlers of survivors. Standard poodles were originally bred as retrievers, and their diminutive cousins retrain that trait, so perhaps it is not as improbable as it seems. Dog speed, Mari and Koro! - William
https://this.kiji.is/200128234382099956?c=92619697908483575

"The city of Kumamoto suffered the third-largest net outflow of 1,540, and the Kumamoto Prefecture town of Mashiki, hit hardest by the powerful quakes, saw the sixth-largest net outflow of 1,319."
-- Kirk
Population influx into greater Tokyo slows down
TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The number of people who moved into the greater Tokyo area exceeded that of people moving out by 117,868 in 2016, marking a net population inflow for the 21st consecutive year, the internal affairs ministry said Tuesday.

Hi everyone! The Sojo University Teaching and Learning Forum is tomorrow. Check out our program here. - Levy
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BxlxSAjh7BDmX3RKcTNTdjJ2RkE

[Kumamoto UNESCO Association］2/12(Sun) Try and enjoy the Noh performance at the workshop!! | Consortium Kumamoto

I like Kumamoto by I'm repulsed by the seedy areas near Shimotori. The allegations in this article are particularly repulsive.
-- Kirk
Kumamoto cops: Hostess club employed middle school girls | The Tokyo Reporter
Police started receiving tips about employment of young girls in November

"The Building Standards Law only sets out the bare minimum standards for builders, so it does not guarantee that a house will be entirely safe. However, during the Kumamoto Earthquake [in 2016], we also saw a clear difference in the degree of damage inflicted on houses built in different periods. According to a report by a commission of experts set up by the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry, only 5 percent of wooden houses built before 1981 in the center of Mashiki, Kumamoto Prefecture, escaped damage. This rose to about 20 percent for houses built from 1981 to 2000, and about 60 percent for houses built in 2000 and beyond. This supports the idea that if no effort has been made to add quake resistance to a house, it will collapse more easily."
Quake-resistant housing vital for saving lives
The Great Hanshin Earthquake of January 1995 destroyed or severely damaged about 250,000 houses and residential buildings. About 90 percent of the deaths in the earthquake (see below), excluding those who died later of secondary earthquake-related causes, were killed when houses collapsed or caught…

Another teaching opportunity. -- Shared by Kirk
急な用事や病気でレッスンをお休みしても、振替レッスンができるから安心。カフェスタイルの待合室. 待合室はいつでもご利用頂けます。レッスン以外でもお気軽にお立ちより下さい。

Kumamoto University is looking for staff to work in their Global College. They require fluency in both English and Japanese. The pay is not great but, depending on your situation, it might be worth considering.
http://www.c3.kumamoto-u.ac.jp/college/recruit/
-- Kirk

Shindo 3 (magnitude 3.8) in Yatsushiro a few moments ago . . .
http://www.jma.go.jp/jp/quake/20170126233747495-262334.html
-- Kirk

Sorry for the late notice but tomorrow a couple of lectures will be given in English at Kumamoto University by two world-class scholars. Anyone who is interested is encouraged to attend. The titles of the lectures are in English and a Japanese note indicates that the lectures will be in English "for the most part" (原則として）.
For more information go to
http://ewww.kumamoto-u.ac.jp/en/event/11/
-- Kirk

Here's another article about the Nadeshiko soccer game.
-- Kirk
http://kyodonews.net/news/2017/01/24/97521
Soccer: Nadeshiko Japan to play Costa Rica in April friendly | Kyodo News
Former women's world champions Nadeshiko Japan will play Costa Rica in a friendly in Kumamoto city on April 9,