Good news from Franck of Michi No Eki Aso: http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/denku_franck2711/56286192.html
2016-12-27 07:18 JST 2016 Good news from Franck of Michi No Eki Aso: http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/denku_franck2711/56286192.html Two roads are finally reopening in the area! - Michi No Eki AsoHello everyone ! Bonjour ! There is a lot of changes concerning the road situation in Aso area. As I told you in this bl... http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/denku_franck2711/56286192.html ↗ View original post on Facebook For a link to the original post on Facebook, open this page on a computer. Reactions: 8 · Comments: 0 · Shares: 3 ← 2016-12-26 22:39 JST 2016-12-27 11:32 JST → Around this time … 2016-12-27 12:36 JSTOur friend Mitch Hons has begun what is called the Kumamoto Earthquake Experience Project (KEEP) to record memories of those who experienced the Kumamoto quakes for reference by future generations. Your contributions are welcome. More info can be found at their site. - Williamhttps://kumadaiquake.wordpress.com/Kumamoto Earthquake Experience Project (KEEP) 2016-12-27 12:45 JSTKumamoto Shimin Byoin ("citizen's hospital") was heavily damaged in the quakes; all patients were transferred out, and the facility was closed. Recovery is proceeding, though, and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and Growing Care Unit (GCU) reopened on 12/26 with the admission of five-month old Ichigi-chan, whose parents had heretofore had to drive four hours to a facility in Kurume. The NICU currently has space for 18 infants and the GCU 24. - Williamhttp://kumanichi.com/news/local/main/20161226004.xhtml新生児集中治療室病棟が再開 熊本市民病院－熊本のニュース│ くまにちコム 2016-12-27 21:22 JSTThis is a bit complicated, so please pay attention. In 1921, some French artists, probably because absinthe was in and total warfare out (both cases would prove temporary, but those are different stories), decided to found a new country which they dubbed "la République de Montmartre." Flash forward some 94 years later and - hey! - it still exists! Though not an actual country, they like to play so, with elected officials and traditional dress; actually, they are a philanthropic organization aiding children and artists.Anyway, the reason i bring this up is that Kumamon was yesterday made an honorary citizen of la République de Montmartre, joining anthropologist Aoki Tamotsu (青木保) and Hyogo Prefecture governor Ido Toshizou (井戸敏三) as the only Japanese to have received that honor. Apparently, it was bestowed due to Kumamon's contribution to French cutlery. (Seriously. That's what the article said.)Admit it: Who among us would not want to share a bottle of absinthe with Kumamon? - Williamhttp://kumanichi.com/news/local/main/20161227004.xhtmlくまモンが名誉市民に 仏民間文化組織が任命－熊本のニュース│ くまにちコム 2016-12-27 11:32 JSTBird flu (H5) has been discovered in Nankan, northern Kumamoto. About 50 chickens have died. According, in order to prevent the spread of the disease, the prefecture has decided to cull about 107,000 chickens within a 10 kilometer radius of the farm where the disease was discovered. The article doesn't say anything about the possibility of spread to humans but I assume that this aggressive response will significantly reduce that danger.-- Kirk http://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20161227/k10010821041000.html熊本・南関町でも 鳥インフルでニワトリ処分始まる | NHKニュース 2016-12-27 12:55 JSTIn more medical news, Kumamoto Prefecture has announced collaboration with the Self Defense Force (SDF) for transportation of patients during the winter. Particularly due to worries over icy roads, necessary transportation of patients from the Aso Medical Center will by conducted by SDF helicopters at night, when medical helicopters are prohibited from flying. More info is at the link. - Williamhttp://kumanichi.com/news/local/main/20161226005.xhtml阿蘇地域の夜間急患、陸自ヘリで搬送へ－熊本のニュース│ くまにちコム 2016-12-27 07:18 JSTGood news from Franck of Michi No Eki Aso:Two roads are finally reopening in the area! - Michi No Eki Aso (this post) 2016-12-26 22:39 JSTI just learned about a deal on Amakusa Airlines that has just ended. Even though the promotion is over, I think I'll go ahead an post about it. Maybe something similar will be done next year.The following Facebook post from Amakusa Airlines features a YouTube video report about the promotion:https://www.facebook.com/mizoka.atr42/posts/1364809326876304The deal was that, during the month before Christmas, anyone in a Santa suit could fly from Fukuoka to Amakusa for just 3,000 yen. The "3" in 3,000 was decided upon because "Santa" starts with "san." Here's the official announcement in Japanese:https://www.amx.co.jp/news/n_20161101_362.htmlThough I'm sure that there was no intent to exclude foreigners, this deal seems to have been announced in Japanese but not on the English side of the site.-- Kirk 2016-12-26 20:03 JSTI've written several times about how to avoid getting gouged for cell phone service by major providers such as AU, Docomo, and SoftBank:https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/1131066736966757https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/1157172877689476The issue is not unique to Kumamoto but I think it should be of particular interest to foreign residents, especially people who will not be here for the full two-year contract period that the major companies insist upon and/or people who have an unlocked ("sim free") phone and only need a provider.I'm writing again today because I've had some experience with UQ, which the "SIM-Only Mobile Providers in Japan" page describes as follows: "Not to be confused with U-Mobile, UQ Mobile resells Au's service, which makes sense since KDDI is a key shareholder."http://www.mondaiji.com/blog/japan/general/10240-sim-only-mobile-providers-in-japanHere's a UQ page in English:http://www.uqwimax.jp/english/customers/At any rate, we chose UQ because we had been using AU and had the impression (perhaps mistaken impression) that things would go more smoothly if we used an AU-related company. What I would like to report is that I found the support staff to be polite and helpful, but also poorly trained and not-well versed in how to make different phones work with their system. I'll avoid going into detail but it took over a week, with many hours on the phone and lots of going back and forth between the local shop to figure out what SIM card would work on our phone. Perhaps some of the confusion stemmed from our not buying the phone directly through UQ. Nonetheless, we bought a phone (an AU iPhone 6s) that the company had authorized on their web page. After going back and forth with support staff about problems related to the SIM card, I went back and read some fine print on the companies web site. There I found the answer to the issue and wound up having to teach the answer to the support staff. I wanted to share this experience because, though I still believe that more people would benefit from avoiding the big three providers (AU, Docomo, and SoftBank), I've learned that it can be hard for consumers who buy a phone separately and then try to get it to work with a cheap provider like UQ. If you are going to do something like this you will first need to research your phone purchase and what services you can and cannot expect (is tethering possible, does the phone need to be unlocked, etc) very carefully.I'd also like to make a comment about Japan's vaunted service culture. In general, I would agree that people in stores and in call centers who respond to inquiries and requests for help are very polite and that they try to be helpful. Still, truly good service in a technical field requires knowledge and expertise. In this area, I found UQ to be sorely lacking -- and this problem seems to be systemic because I spoke with many different representatives who could not provide the correct answer regarding the SIM card required in our case, even after checking with superiors. It reminded my of a very computer-savy student who came to Kumamoto several years ago. In a class discussion about Japan's service culture, he was very critical because of his experience at electronics stores. Perhaps a language barrier was part of the problem but his main complaint was that the staff didn't seem to know much about what they were selling. He would have preferred a surly nerd with bad hygiene, but who really knew his stuff to a polite but clueless part-time worker. During my experience with UQ, I too would have preferred a gruff geek with the right answers. ;)http://www.uqwimax.jp/lp/uqm/01/UQコミュニケーションズ｜UQ WiMAX,UQ mobile｜超高速モバイルインターネットのWiMAX2+,格安スマホ,格安SIM 2016-12-26 13:50 JSTKyushu Gakuin took the bronze medal in the national ekiden (relay) event held this year in Kyoto. Kyugaku is known as a running powerhouse; my son ran with the team for a few years. Look for the crimson and gold among the leaders! (Incidentally, if you are non-Japanese and are looking for a junior or high school suitable for your offspring, you couldn't do better than Kyugaku - as a Lutheran school, it emphasizes English and is as close to an international school as Kumamoto offers.) -- William 2016-12-26 09:42 JSTOur friend and favorite jazz fabulist Yuji Hashimoto has mentioned a possible New Years gig other than roasting surume - The Heat, a Rolling Stones cover band so true that the lead singer just had his eighth child at the age of 70*. They will perform at a venue in Hanabata-cho on 12/31. Info can be found at the link. - William*I made that up.https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1247190822018212&set=pcb.1247200922017202&type=3&theater 2016-12-24 11:47 JSTWilliam posted about Martin Scorsese's new film, Silence. I think the setting is Nagasaki but there were many hidden Christians in Amakusa as well, so the story is not unrelated to Kumamoto. Sakitsu Church in Amakusa was built on a site were Christians were forced to step on an image of Jesus or the Virgin Mary in order to signify their renunciation of the faith (the practice is called fumie). According to the following Japan Times article, Sakitsu, where "Christians practice their faith despite a ban, . . . is one of several Christian sites the government will put forward . . . as candidates for a . . . UNESCO world heritage listing." The proposal discussed in the article was postponed but is being pursued again now.http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/09/17/national/japan-moves-recommend-christian-sites-world-heritage-listing/If you enjoy listing to audio, you can download an mp3 of an interview with Martin Scorsese about the movie or stream it directly.-- Kirkhttp://www.npr.org/2016/12/20/506155008/the-modern-lessons-of-martin-scorseses-17th-century-epic-silenceThe Modern Lessons Of Martin Scorsese's 17th-Century Epic, 'Silence'
