Hi! I'm sharing this in the hope that more people will see it this way.
2014-08-25 07:56 JST 2014 Hi! I'm sharing this in the hope that more people will see it this way. ↗ View original post on Facebook For a link to the original post on Facebook, open this page on a computer. ← 2014-08-24 10:33 JST 2014-08-25 15:05 JST → Around this time … 2014-08-26 16:00 JSTMie, the team that defeated Kumamoto's Johoku, came very close to winning the tournament. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2014/08/25/baseball/osaka-toin-captures-koshien-title/#.U_viGUuyu0wOsaka Toin captures Koshien title | The Japan Times 2014-08-26 11:45 JSTThe Redback Spider is a species from Australia that has established itself in Japan. The first one was found in Kumamoto last year in Tsuruhada (the northern part of Kumamoto City). This article reports that an additional 42 spiders and eggs have been found in that area recently. The city is advising wearing gloves when working in areas that spiders are likely to inhabit. For more information about the spider in English, seeDeadly red-back spider spreads across Japanhttp://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201210180001andRedback Spider, Latrodectus hasseltihttp://australianmuseum.net.au/redback-spiderTo find the city's warning (in Japanese) go tohttp://www.city.kumamoto.jp/hpkiji/pub/detail.aspx?c_id=5&id=3057http://mainichi.jp/area/kumamoto/news/m20140823ddlk43040310000c.htmlセアカゴケグモ:熊本市北区に ４２匹と卵確認 ／熊本 - 毎日新聞 2014-08-26 08:00 JSTKumamon takes the ALS ice bucket challenge . . .http://youtu.be/3FHCsNqTK0E 2014-08-25 15:05 JSTThis article begins with a few paragraphs about the Kumamoto Castle Marathon.http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/marathons-gain-traction/1324416.htmlMarathons gain traction in sports vacations - Channel NewsAsia 2014-08-25 20:00 JSTHere's an invitation to play flag football from the KumAJET page:"On September 15th (public holiday) there is a flag football tournament just north of Kumamoto city. It's a relaxed day playing against a JHS team and a few other teams. If you would like to join us or, have 5 players to start a team, I can supply more details. We also play in the Kyushu tournaments traveling to other prefectures which is a good opportunity to see the sights."https://www.facebook.com/groups/45261511655/permalink/10152379945941656/ 2014-08-25 07:56 JSTHi! I'm sharing this in the hope that more people will see … (this post) 2014-08-24 10:33 JSTI received a question about how to order cheap tickets through Jetstar. (The 99 yen tickets, by the way, are gone -- at least between Tokyo and Kumamoto but there are still relatively inexpensive seats available for some dates.) I went to the Jetstar website and found that the only way to find any tickets between Kumamoto and other points in Japan is to go to the Japanese website:http://www.jetstar.com/jp/ja/homeI illustrated my feeling about this asymmetry between English and Japanese by adding a little comment to the screen shot I took of the English search page on the Jetstar site. 2014-08-23 20:48 JSTThe Asahi editorial cites Kumamoto's "preventive evacuations" as a model for the nation. When the call to evacuate came out in July, I didn't realize that they were part of a new program. ====== start quote ====== Kumamoto Prefecture in the last fiscal year launched a new disaster response program focused on “preventive evacuations,” which can be instructive for other local governments.The prefectural government developed the program after heavy downpours in the early morning hours caused casualties in July 2012.Under the program, when heavy nighttime rainfall is expected, local governments set up evacuation sites in the evening and call for voluntary evacuations.When Typhoon No. 8 struck Japan in July, some 5,000 people in Kumamoto Prefecture actually took shelter under the program. Even if an evacuation later turns out to have been unnecessary, such actions are meaningful because they make people more conscious of the risks.To boost our own safety during natural disasters, we should do what we can during normal times.====== end quote ====== http://ajw.asahi.com/article/views/editorial/AJ201408220027EDITORIAL: Hiroshima landslides show need to review disaster response plans - AJW by The Asahi... 2014-08-21 22:21 JSTRKK's evening news show included a segment about halal food in Kumamoto last month. The prefecture is interested in slaughtering meat in accord with Islamic practices so that it can be certified as halal. Part of the segment was filmed at this store near Kumamoto University.SISWAHYU HALAL FOODJapan, 熊本県熊本市中央区黒髪5丁目8-22 +81 96-343-7568 http://www.siswahyu.com/warungindonesia/index.php 2014-08-21 14:52 JSTThis, of course, is about the disaster in Hiroshima but I think there is an indirect connection to discussions we've had on this page. When a major typhoon threatened to dump a lot of rain on Kumamoto in July, some of the evacuation orders were seen as overreactions. As I pointed at the time (https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/kumamoto-i/conversations/messages/12956), predicting exactly where a landslide or flood will occur in time to evacuate potential victims is not a simple matter. Sadly, in this case, the evacuation advisories came too late. The typhoon season is far from over this year so I think it's wise to bear in mind that heavy rain and strong winds can indeed be very dangerous -- especially if you live in a vulnerable area. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/08/21/national/hiroshima-slide-alert-said-tardy-toll-hits-39-search-missing-seven-continues/Hiroshima slide alert said tardy; toll hits 39 as search for missing seven continues | The Japan... 2014-08-21 12:39 JST99 seats on each flight will be sold for 99 yen (about 1 dollar U.S.).http://zipanguflyer.blogspot.jp/2014/08/jetstar-to-launch-kumamoto-in-october.htmlZipanguFlyer: Jetstar to launch Kumamoto in October with three routes.