Drive-in fireworks tomorrow (Sept. 9) at Kumamoto Port. -- Kirk
2023-09-08 10:18 JST 2023 Drive-in fireworks tomorrow (Sept. 9) at Kumamoto Port. -- Kirk ドライブイン花火熊本2023の日程・時間や穴場は？駐車場券の種類・料金やアクセスは？ドライブイン花火熊本2023について、開催日程・時間や場所、穴場スポットや見える場所、駐車券の種類・チケット料金や購入法、アクセス等気になりますよね。ここでは、ドライブイン花火熊本2023の日程・時間や場所、穴.... https://forestpost-jp.com/2023/09/07/drivinhanabikumamoto/ 📅 Event details Event:Drive-in fireworksDate:2023-09-09Location:Kumamoto Port ↗ View original post on Facebook For a link to the original post on Facebook, open this page on a computer. Reactions: 3 · Comments: 0 · Shares: 0 ← 2023-09-08 10:00 JST 2023-09-08 11:46 JST → Around this time … 2023-09-09 12:54 JSTWilliam The Mainichi writes about a British researcher at KU who, having lived through the quakes of 2016, has written a booklet about how to deal with earthquakes. https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20230413/p2a/00m/0na/020000cIt also reserves as a reminder to stay prepared for the next "big one." In particular, discussing with loved ones about where to meet should the quake happen during the daytime is important.British man who survived major Japan quake works to boost foreigners' safety in disasters - The Mainichi 2023-09-09 12:41 JSTKirk here with some information about free Japanese language classes offered online. Ironically, I learned about this opportunity from an Japanese language (!) article that announced it. Here's a DeepL translation of some key sentences I pick out from the announcement:--- begin quote ---We are pleased to announce that we will be holding an online beginner's Japanese language class for foreigners living in Kumamoto Prefecture on behalf of Kumamoto Prefecture. The deadline for registration is September 22nd. Application forms are available in English, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Korean, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Tagalog. This time, we are pleased to offer free online lessons to foreign residents in Kumamoto Prefecture, where the number of foreign workers is on the rise. We hope you will take this opportunity to sign up for the lessons, as they are easy to take even for those who do not know where to start learning.--- end quote ---The URL of this Japanese-language announcement is here:https://www.value-press.com/pressrelease/324655It contains links to the forms in Chinese (simplified and traditional), Korean, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Tagalog. Here's the address of the form in English:https://attainj.co.jp/kumamoto-nihongo/form/en/Since there is a deadline for applications, I've added this to the Kumamoto International events calendar, which you can find here:https://www.facebook.com/events/calendarFor foreigners living in Kumamoto Prefecture Basic Japanese online class Application form 2023-09-08 21:51 JSTKirk here with a quick heads-up about a celebration of friendship between the people of Kumamoto and Australia. On Sunday, Australian shakuhachi master Anne Norman will perform on the 5th floor of the Kumamoto Shintoshin Plaza (near Kumamoto Station). More information can be found in the first image I'm sharing and on the following page:https://www.kumamoto-australia.com/50%E5%91%A8%E5%B9%B4%E8%A8%98%E5%BF%B5%E3%82%A4%E3%83%99%E3%83%B3%E3%83%88In addition, you can get a sense of Anne Norman's style of performance here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_xgQMnaCDYTo see more local events that have been written about on this page, check out the Kumamoto International events calendar:https://www.facebook.com/events/calendar 2023-09-08 12:58 JSTKirk here. I'm pretty sure this one-day-only resurrection of the "SL Aso Boy" steam locomotive sold out immediately. So, I think the only option left for fans is to wave at the train as it passes by on Friday, September 22nd. This is a sort "last hurrah" for the steam locomotive, which is slated for retirement in the spring, after a century of service.「SLあそBOY」が18年ぶり、1日限定で復活運行 南阿蘇鉄道のトロッコ列車にも乗車……熊本県の復興記念タイアップツアー | 鉄道ニュース | 鉄道チャンネル 2023-09-08 11:46 JSTKirk here with a post about RKK's coverage of the Vietnamese community in Kumamoto. （日本語を読まれる方へ 最後に日本語があります。読んでいただければ幸いです。）I'm linking to a text + pictures version of the TV report that was published on the web. Unfortunately, they haven't published the original video but, if you read Japanese, you can get the idea.One interesting point made in the video is that the number of Vietnamese residents of Kumamoto is now larger than that of any other country (see image; 6000 Vietnamese residents!). The segment also included lots of information about delicious Vietnamese food. With the growth of the Vietnamese community, the number of Vietnamese restaurants has also increased significantly. The descriptions made me want to start making the rounds. :)One problem with the broadcast in my view was the claim that the Vietnamese people tend to be "pro-Japanese" (親日). There's nothing wrong with liking Japan or being "pro-Japanese," but if you say that people from one country are "pro-Japanese" I think you're implying that folks from other countries, particularly China and Korea, tend to be more "anti-Japanese" (反日). To be honest, I really hate the tendency of the media in Japan to pigeonhole foreigners as either "pro-Japanese" or "anti-Japanese." My distaste for this "pro-Japanese" vs. "anti-Japanese" labeling compelled me to write to RKK and ask them to refrain from using such language in future broadcasts. Here's what I wrote:拝啓かつて番組審議会でお世話になった熊本学園大学のカーク・マスデンです。その後もずっとRKKの「ゲツキン」を見ています。有益な情報が多く、ためになる番組です。先日の熊本県在住のベトナム人に関する特集も興味深く拝見しました。取材に応じた方に好感を覚えましたし、紹介された料理もとても美味しそうでしたので、熊本にあるベトナム料理店を訪ねたくなりました。全体として良い特集だったと思いますが、次の言葉が気になりました。「県内に住む外国人約2万人のうち、親日家が多いと言われるベトナム人は約6000人と全体の3割を占め、最も多くなっています。」この文内の「親日家」という言葉は問題を孕んでいると思います。特定の国を「親日家が多い」と肯定的に評価する場合、他の国はそれほどでもないという否定的な評価は前提になります。更に「親日」が「反日」の反対語として利用されることが多いので、視聴者の間に「反日家の多い某国の人間と違って」と解釈してしまう人がいる危険性もあるでしょう。もう一つの問題は、特定の国は「親日家が多い」、他の国はそうではないという評価は、実際に熊本にいる外国人に当てはまらない可能性が高いということです。例えば、現在、日中関係は芳しくありませんが、私が所属する熊本学園大学に留学生として来ている中国人留学生の多くは、日本での生活を非常に高く評価しています。このことを痛感したのは今年6月14日に熊本学園大学で行われた「外国人留学生弁論大会」でした。中国からの留学生も他の国からの留学生も日本人に親切にしてもらったことや日本文化の良さなどについて、熱っぽく語っていました。出身国による「親日」対「反日」のような違いを一切感じさせない大会でした。しかし、外国人との交流があまりない視聴者が「ベトナムには親日家が多い」と聞けば、「反日家の多い中国とは違う」と誤解する虞があるように思います。大変長くなりましたが、結論としては一部の国の人は「親日」で他の国の人は「反日」という単純な発想を助長するような言葉遣いを避けていただきたいと思います。よろしくお願いします。敬具 https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/rkk/705775?display=1 2023-09-08 10:18 JSTDrive-in fireworks tomorrow (Sept. 9) at Kumamoto Port. -- … (this post) 2023-09-08 10:00 JSTGood morning! Kirk here. This post is a follow up to a very nice post William did on the same topic:https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid02tY2U9PkVHicE2HkNzSjwpDwjddKCfuYEXjC52HFMhVARAUv6fThQdfasbA7u7bElThanks again to William and everyone who commented at the time for your kind words. At that point, though, we were still shy of the "5,000 likes" mark. Last night, however, we passed it so I thought I'd write a bit about the current "State of the Page," so to speak.I don't know who number 5,000 was; if I did, I suppose I would have to give them some prize, like what is given to the unsuspecting customer who walks into a store and gets showered with confetti because they're deemed to be number 1,000,000 or something. But, alas, I have no prizes to offer, just gratitude to the other editors (whose posts are often considerably more popular than most of mine) and you readers/participants for being so nice. The page has been quite peaceful this year. I upset some people with my rather ill-conceived April Fools post but the negative feedback was reasonable and civil, which I appreciated. Other than that, the page has been quite peaceful. Even more discussion and interaction would be nice but I hope we can maintain this friendly, respectful atmosphere well into the future.Even though the number of "likes" has grown over the years, I think the number of active readers/participants has reached the level of saturation. Individual posts are typically seen by just a few hundred people and the total daily "reach" (number of sets of eyeballs) for the page has been pretty steady over recent years at a little over a thousand or so. Even if we collect a few more "likes," I doubt that the active readership will grow much in the future. In fact, because the younger generation seems to be abandoning Facebook for other platforms, we may even wind up shrinking a bit in terms of actual readership. For that and other reasons, I'm still looking for another platform, not to replace Facebook but to add to it.Thanks again for participating! 2023-09-08 09:48 JSTWilliam Valid concerns have been raised regarding the maltreatment of horses during the Fujisaki Hachimangu Autumn Festival (藤崎八旛宮秋季例大祭, popularly known as "boshita"). In addition, I find the seemingly endless procession repetitive and lacking in creativity.There is, though, a work-around: Get up at 4:00 and head straight to the shrine to watch the preparations. All is eerily quiet save for the clanking of armor and the whinnying of nervous horses dimly aware that this is turning out to be not an average day. If lucky, you can observe the mayor (or is it governor?), who leads the procession, mount his steed. It is photography heaven. Afterwards, go home and back to bed. If you'd like, you can go back in the evening to watch the exhausted procession return. The procession itself begins at 6:00.Photo nabbed from this site: beautiful-world-kyushu.com/fujisakigu/ 2023-09-07 18:26 JST"A plum by any other name would taste as sweet." I'm pretty sure that the fruit you see would be labeled "Plums" in the US, where I'm from. A "prune," by contrast, is usually a dried plum. But Wikipedia tells me that, "prune" can also refer to the "firm-fleshed fruit (plum) of Prunus domestica varieties that have a high soluble solids content, and do not ferment during drying." So, I guess it's not exactly incorrect to call these prunes -- just confusing to old prunes, I mean "people," like me. By the way, though I had some qualms about the English on the label, I found the fruit itself to be absolutely delicious. Highly recommended!-- Kirkhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prune 2023-09-07 17:04 JSTKirk here with a tip for archaeologists of the future: If you look inside the rebuilt walls of Kumamoto Castle, you may find some stones that were decorated by local children way back in 2023. The one in the cover image says "I love Kumamoto Castle" and has picture of Kumamon, a mythic creature worshipped by natives at the time. ;) https://news.goo.ne.jp/article/kab/region/kab-20230905-00007776.html 2023-09-07 13:31 JSTKirk with some news that both interested and frustrated me.https://news4sanantonio.com/news/local/san-antonios-gift-from-japan-the-tale-of-the-tranquil-kumamoto-en-garden-relaxing-japanese-botanical-garden-bexar-county-community-enjoyment-entertainmentFirst, though the article doesn't explain it, I learned that the bronze statue is of Naoko SHIRANE (白根直子), a member of the very famous and powerful Mitsui family (think of the bank, the manufacturing enterprises, etc.). She's not from Kumamoto but it seems that she took an interest in and helped promote the sister relationship between Kumamoto and San Antonio:https://shiranefoundation.org/about/Another thing I learned is that the garden was designed by Kiyoshi Yasui, who modeled it after the Katsura Imperial Villa (桂離宮) in Kyoto. As the name "Imperial Villa" implies, this place is for the private use of the emperor and his family. I don't know if it's ever possible to get inside to take a peak at it but I suspect that the garden in San Antonio may be actually be an easier way (if you're in Texas at least) to get a sense of the beauty of the Imperial Villa.Now for the frustrating part of the article. It says "Modeled after a garden at Emperor Kiyoshi Yasui's summer residence," promoting Yasui to emperor. Here's what I tried to write about that in a comment: --- start quote --- Here's a quote from the official website: "Designed by the Emperor’s gardener (and corporate CEO) Kiyoshi Yasui, this 85’ x 85’ garden is modeled after one at the Emperor’s summer house — which required special permission. "https://www.sabot.org/explore/featured-attractions/Actually, even the "Emperor's gardener" distinction is not quite right. It seems to be true that Yasui played an important role in the renovation of the garden at the Katsura Imperial Villa, but that doesn't mean that he was employed primarily as the "Emperor’s gardener."By the way, it does seem to be the case that the Katsura Imperial Villa that Yasui worked on was the model for San Antonio's garden. Here's a source in Japanese:https://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/gaiko/local/page22_003550.html--- end quote ---I made an ID and password so I could post to the page but it didn't work. I'm not sure of the cause but that made the experience all the more frustrating. Still, since I may have an opportunity to visit San Antonia some day, I was glad to learn a bit more about the garden. :)https://news4sanantonio.com/news/local/san-antonios-gift-from-japan-the-tale-of-the-tranquil-kumamoto-en-garden-relaxing-japanese-botanical-garden-bexar-county-community-enjoyment-entertainmentPHOTOS: The tranquil Japanese garden bridging cultures and cities is San Antonio's hidden
