Kumamoto International Archive

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

Kirk here. Ubuyama-mura has an exchange program with Thailand. It was put on hold during the pandemic but is up and running again after a four-year hiatus.
By the way, Ubuyama-mura is between Aso and Kuju, southeast of Oguni. If you haven't been there, it's a nice place to visit. I'll append the address of a post William did in October of last year about the Higotai flower, for which Ubuyama-mura is famous.
https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/eb2a19cffc3d806390ccc060c60c0437a8836407
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid02bJpREsTE2TRhbhfsrpL2vEai1iRz7yr7VbMZeXJohMPCJApxu9fRQSQQ8yVPwa6Xl
【4年ぶりの対面交流】産山村とタイの子どもたち（ＫＫＴ熊本県民テレビ） - Yahoo!ニュース
産山村とタイの中学生の交換留学事業が行われています。新型コロナの影響で4年ぶりに対面で叶ったこの交流は肥後の国とタイをかけて産山村の花のヒゴタイ交流と呼ばれています。ことし36回目で、ソーラ

Sean here –
The spider lily season is in full bloom and autumn has arrived. Just a short drive/cycle on Rt 28 / Densha Dori to the edge of Mashiki Machi, and you and your family can explore this little area which promotes itself as a spider lily mecca.
A river/nature walk at any time of the year made a bit more special with the annual appearance of nature's fireworks on stems.
Maybe 1K or 2K out and back walk on a paved path. Great for the entire family. When you're done, enjoy some lunch and or soft cream nearby.

Kirk here. Friday night my wife and I attended the free jazz concert in Suizenji and had the additional pleasure of meeting friend Robert Mortenson and his wife there. Robert had a little digital camera, the kind that many of us used to use before smart phones. Looking at his photos, I can now see why he continues to use it! :)

Kirk here with two editorials about the recent court ruling in favor of Minamata victims seeking compensation. Both editorials urge the government not to appeal and to comply with the court decision. I thought the following statement in the Asahi editorial was particularly noteworthy:
--- start quote ---
Even when the Supreme Court indicated for the second time lenient recognition criteria in 2013, the government didn't alter its designation standards requiring a combination of multiple symptoms.
Instead, the government even released new guidelines raising the bar for official recognition the following year. Such insincere responses should never be repeated.
--- end quote ---
In my mind, this is a representative sample of how both Kumamoto Prefecture and the national government have dealt with Minamata disease over the decades: Resist providing compensation to the extent possible. Even government steps that appear positive, such as the 2009 special measures law, can be interpreted as attempts to bring things to a close as economically as possible. Government resistance to complete compensation for all victims is the main factor contributing to the seemingly never ending series of Minamata disease lawsuits.
EDITORIAL: All Minamata victims should receive relief as new ruling shows
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15015862
Editorial: Minamata disease ruling stresses Japan gov't relief must match reality
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20230928/p2a/00m/0op/011000c
EDITORIAL: All Minamata victims should receive relief as new ruling shows | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis
The latest court ruling on a legal case concerning the government’s relief program for Minamata disease patients challenges the fundamental integrity of the relief system and unequivocally underscores its inadequacy.

Atsuko here.
Share photos of adorable animals.
Last Wednesday, for the first time in a long time, I went to Kumamoto Zoo on a one-day trip with my elementary school. It was before Corona. There were many visitors, as it seemed that the Red Panda baby had just opened to the public. They were cute. The baby chimpanzee born in the spring was also cute. I recommend the sleeping lion. It was the first time I saw a sleeping lion so close.
In the museum I saw a ハダカデバネズミ naked mole rat. This immortal creature lives five times longer than other rodents and is not susceptible to cancer. I was happy to see it because I had heard that it was being researched at Kumamoto University and I wanted to see it. Will Kumamoto soon be a prefecture of immortality?
There will also be a zoo festival on 7 and 8 October.
Please enjoy Autumn zoo you too.ଘ(੭ˊ꒳ˋ)੭✧
https://www-ezooko-jp.translate.goog/kiji/pub/detail.aspx?c_id=3&type=top&id=846&_x_tr_sl=ja&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=ja

Fiona here with a shop recommendation for anyone who is into board games. I went to check out this recycle shop today and found hundreds of board games for sale, mostly Japanese but many in English, German and other languages. The shop is called Surugaya and it's located in Hiyoshi, Minami-ku. I'll post a Google Maps link in the comments.

Sean here-
Reporting from the – “I read it on the internet, so it must be true” desk –
Bolder Breeding-
As most already know - Kumamoto is a nature paradise.
Did you know Kinpo san is known for its bolder breeding habitat?
One of the few places in the world where boulders migrate to breed. Amateurs and professionals alike who study boulder behavior are known as Boulderologist, and or Stoners.
This is the time of year to observe this mating ritual or boulder bonding.
Witness the courtship behaviors to attract a mate. Watch in amazement as Mama boulders nurture their rubble broods.
Remember to observe the signs posted warning of pebbles playing or crossing the road. And most importantly, life is too short, make time to laugh.
Hope you enjoy.

Kirk here announcing that I'm planning to slow down. I've decided that I've bitten off a bit more than I can chew and therefore need to take steps to reduce my work load.
1. Why have I been posting so much, anyway?
Earlier this year, I started to feel that I wanted to do a better job of giving people advance warning about events. But, I couldn't find a simple list of upcoming local events, even in Japanese, so I decided to subscribe to some Google alerts for news articles with various Japanese terms that I thought would give me the kinds of information I was looking for. Basically, I think I can say that my strategy worked. I feel that I have been better able to provide advance warning about upcoming events in the last few months than in the past. But, it meant that I needed to go through a number of alerts each day, each with links to many articles in Japanese. Then, if I found something I felt I should share, translation and additional research (searching for appropriate information in English, etc.) also took time.
Another side effect of receiving the various Google alerts I subscribed to was that I happened upon other information (news, etc.) that I felt needed to be shared on the page. So, the combination of the event information and other information I happened upon led me to post significantly more than I had been posting in the past.
2. What have I learned?
Even though I've decided to unsubscribe from most of the Google alerts and thereby reduce the number of posts I feel compelled to make, I think that this has been a valuable learning experience for me. I've learned that what really needs to happen is for a governmental body or some body devoted to the promotion of tourism to organize Japanese-language event information in a single calendar or list of events. Once the Japanese-language information is properly organized, it will be much easier for people like me to look through the list of events and then pick out information to introduce on pages such as this one.
Someday when I get a little more time, I'm planning to see if I can get some government agency or organization that promotes tourism to do this. I'll report back if I make any progress.
3. Am I going to stop posting?
No, I'll still be pretty compulsive about posting the information that comes my way (changing my basic personality isn't part of the plan). I'll just be receiving far fewer e-mail notifications so I anticipate that the number of posts will fall accordingly. I'm sorry to say, though, that this means there will be more events that I will not be able to tell you about in advance.
Also, since I've already scheduled some posts for next week that are based on information from Japanese-language Google alerts, the change in my approach may not be apparent immediately.

P.S. I stole the graphic for this post from the following page:
https://www.peoplematters.in/article/culture/the-danger-of-overwork-can-lead-to-death-be-careful-17402

Nice view of the moon near the castle last night. -- Kirk
丸い月ぽっかり　熊本城天守閣の上に中秋の名月｜熊本日日新聞社
　29日は中秋の名月。熊本市中央区の熊本城二の丸広場では、天守閣の上に丸い月がぽっかりと浮かぶ様子が見られた。

Kirk here. COVID-19 has had an negative impact on Kumamoto's bus companies. In response the decreased ridership, they have decided to raise bus fare to 180 yen beginning on October 1st. -- KIrk
熊本市中心部の路線バスが10月から均一180円運賃へ　初乗り料金は20円の値上げに | 熊本のニュース｜RKK熊本放送
赤字が続く路線バスの利用促進と収支改善に向け、熊本市中心部では10月から均一運賃が導入されます。熊本市内の路線バスを運行するバス会社の合計収支はコロナ禍前で約30億円、コロナ禍以降は約40億円の赤字で厳し…

I'm not sure if this has anything to do with the museum to open in Amakusa (previous post) but Kumadai is planning a exhibit on dinosaurs starting October 18. -- Kirk
https://www.kumamoto-u.ac.jp/event/koho/20231018-1024

Amakusa to get a new dinosaur museum next March. As you may know, there's also a dinosaur museum in Mifune. -- Kirk
天草市の新恐竜博物館、24年3月開館　化石や骨格標本など2千点展示｜熊本日日新聞社
　熊本県天草市は22日、市立御所浦恐竜の島博物館を、来年3月20日に開館すると発表した。御所浦町で見つかった国内最大級の大型肉食恐竜の歯の化石や、九州初の恐竜の足跡化石など約2千点を展示する。

Kirk here with an event coming up this weekend that is clearly "on topic" for this page:
30th and 1st (Sat. & Sun.), Sun Road Shinshigai, International Festival
　「第28回熊本国際交流祭典」が9月30日・10月1日の2日間、サンロード新市街（熊本市中央区新市街）で開催される。
熊本・サンロード新市街で「国際交流祭典」　各国の民族衣装試着も
「第28回熊本国際交流祭典」が9月30日・10月1日の2日間、サンロード新市街（熊本市中央区新市街）で開催される。

Kirk here with some good news in a sad and never ending struggle for justice.
Japan's court recognizes more victims of Minamata mercury poisoning and awards them compensation
A Japanese court has ordered the central government, the Kumamoto prefecture and a chemical company to recognize more than 120 plaintiffs as patients of the decades-old Minamata mercury poisoning and pay compensation they have been denied because they developed symptoms after moving away from the re

Kirk here with another post about Japanese encephalitis:
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20230926/p2a/00m/0na/002000c
Here's address of what I posted the other day:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid02cMD5KXyzNsxPWg8FvZBBd85SbRYWoZGb8DMoNsipA1inoNxag2j4GxpqBjeQrENMl
Beware of mosquitoes: 1st Japanese encephalitis case of year confirmed in Kumamoto Pref. - The Mainichi
KUMAMOTO -- Authorities are calling for caution as the first case of Japanese encephalitis in the country this year has been confirmed in Kumamoto Pre

Yum! Vegetarian and vegan-friendly food. Another good reason to read Kuma Visit. -- Kirk
https://www.facebook.com/kumavisit/posts/pfbid09ZhHXLVt54VqEGpLurqpKQHzC4CviySKQzgdFHaRDMmAPw9RrWQnMgWX2njyFz9wl

Kirk here. Lots of events are coming up this weekend. If you click on the following link you can use the calendar to find the post or posts on this page about the event that interests you.
https://kumamotoi.blogspot.com/2023/09/calendar.html

I learned a new expression from this extensive article: "TSMC shock." Makes sense. Thanks to Andrew for the link. -- Kirk
https://www.ft.com/content/09f0ae79-8935-4070-ab52-dc828b770dce?accessToken=zwAGBjpZC3mQkc8J8K55iTVAcNOrUtyCi3cNzg.MEQCIGIDsYSLdJ4JSFGNP0I_vMJ8dlDGYz6LvFCv_3WumXFQAiBGpXbwanLNyGvBLeXnSL5lCspTT8TUhcIot6LtTwGhyA&sharetype=gift&token=33840db8-d465-483d-9067-9910fdb2fe0d
How TSMC’s chip plant is shaking up a small town in Japan
Semiconductor giant’s arrival highlights broader challenges for Asia’s most advanced economy

Kirk here.
--- quote from article ---
“We must urgently strengthen the defense system in the Nansei region, including Okinawa. Camp Kengun has an even heavier responsibility,” he said in the address.
--- end quote ---
Japan’s New Defense Chief Kihara Visits Kumamoto, Emphasizing Importance of Kyushu, Okinawa
KUMAMOTO — Defense Minister Minoru Kihara on Saturday visited Camp Kengun in Kumamoto for his first inspection of Self-Defense Forces units after taking office, indicating the importance he places on the security of Kyushu and Okinawa Prefecture.

Sean here –
For the folks who are city dwellers and are carless and or would prefer a car free adventure, look no further than our collective backyard and favorite mountain (s) –
Grabbed some nice pics yesterday of our paradise – hope you enjoy.
This is a repost –
Optimal conditions for hiking are here. If you are looking for someplace local to explore, check out this site for QR code-guided hikes. Smartphone required.
5 different hikes to suit different skill levels based on "KUSAMAKURA-Three Cornered World" by Natsume Souseki
Natsume Sōseki was the pen name of Natsume Kinnosuke, who is widely considered to be the foremost Japanese novelist of the Meiji Era (1868–1912). Two of his novels, The Three-Cornered World and The 210th Day, are based on his experiences in Kumamoto.
A word of caution. There are many intertwining trails without signage and incredibly old signs which can’t be read, leaving you to guess which way to go.
For detailed info, check out this link.
https://kumamoto-guide.jp/popotabi/en/course/
Available in：
日本語
https://kumamoto-guide.jp/popotabi/course/
中国語
https://kumamoto-guide.jp/popotabi/tw/course/