Posts

Kirk here reporting that the annual "hifuri shinji" (火振り神事) was held in Aso recently (Sunday). The following web page has a good English-language explanation about the ritual:
https://explore-kumamoto.com/hifuri-shinji-festival/
A YouTube video of RKK's recent report (including a comment by a member of Kumamoto's English-speaking non-Japanese community) can be viewed here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K7Ak0cyuFA
Here's the text of the RKK news article:
https://rkk.jp/news/backno_page.php?id=NS003202203211157330111
This year, ordinary people weren't allowed to swing the flaming bales aroundaround becauase of COVID-19 concerns.
Hifuri-Shinji Festival - Explore-Kumamoto
Blazing torches light the sky and reed straw ropes are set on fire and swung around in the Hifuri-Shinji festival a dramatic spectacle at Aso Shrine

Kirk here with Minamata disease news about the Supreme Court rejecting claims for damages.
First, here are a couple of paragraphs from the only English-language article about this verdict that I could find:
Article Headline: Top Court Rejects Minamata Disease Recognition for 8 People
--- start quote ---
In a decision Tuesday, the top court's Third Petty Bench turned down the appeal by the plaintiffs against a Fukuoka High Court ruling, which rejected the claims in a damages lawsuit filed against the Japanese government, Kumamoto Prefecture and chemical maker Chisso Corp., which caused the pollution.
As a result, the high court ruling that reversed a Kumamoto District Court ruling that recognized three of them as sufferers of the disease became final.
--- end quote ---
https://www.nippon.com/en/news/yjj2022031000689/
The article doesn't explain the reasoning for the rejection. I found that in another Japanese-language article put out by the same news service:
更年期障害や飲酒が原因の可能性もあるとして罹患を否定。
https://www.jiji.com/jc/article?k=2022031000689&g=soc
The idea is that the court could not be sure that the typical Minamata disease symptoms were not the result of aging or alcohol consumption. So, even if it's clear that the waters were poisoned and that the poison got in people's bodies and they got sick in a way that is consistent with Minamata disease, if there's some other possible explanation, the victims lose in court.
Now, another thing I find interesting (and disturbing) about this case is that it has been virtually ignored by the English-language press. I thought some more interest might be shown after Johnny Depp raised the profile of Minamata disease with his movie. But, if you do a Google search for "Minamata," you'll find many articles about the movie and about the Minamata treaty to limit mercury use but only one article (the one I quoted) about this verdict. :(
By the way, the URL of the Japanese article with picture I used here is as follows:
https://www.asahi.com/articles/photo/AS20220310002810.html

William　　Just learned that Miyazaki Hayao based the location of his masterpiece, Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し), on Shibu Onsen (渋温泉, bottom) in Nagano. The onsen town reminds me of Oguni (小国, top), a similar onsen town where people wander the, really, only street in yukata borrowed from their ryokan with round slivers of wood hung around their necks - once purchased, this gives pass to five onsen, so carrying money is unnecessary. If you have never been to Kurokawa, you must. One cannot say they have truly visited Kumamoto without.
https://www.kurokawaonsen.or.jp/pickup/yukata/

Kirk here. As the article says, the dropping of restrictioins is nationwide, so that includes Kumamoto, of course. As I've pointed out before the restrictions can be referred to in several ways: "Quasi-emergency" status in English, "man'en boushi tou juuten sochi" (まん延防止等重点措置) in Japanese, "mambo" for short, as well as at least one other English translation that I'm having trouble recalling at the moment.
Japan drops COVID restrictions on bars and restaurants nationwide
Tokyo pub owners both happy and cautious about what comes next

Kirk here with some KamiAmakusa-related news. The other day (several weeks ago, I think) I was watching RKK and saw a segment they did on two people who had moved to KamiAmakusa to help them promote the area -- one Japanese and one Italian. If either of you happen to read Kumamoto International, please feel free to share your material with us. :)
P.S. The photography on their Facebook page in gorgeous. Please have a look. I may share some shots later.
https://www.facebook.com/KArealexperience/posts/132441229306006

Carlton. We've been living with Covid for just over 2 years now, and we are all looking forward to it finally seeming to have diminished and maybe started on its way out of our lives or at worst stay on with a much reduced and consequential presence.
I was going back over some old correspondence of mine from that time and came across this YouTube video showing how China then was dealing with it. That Shenzhen and Shanghai now are back to lockdowns again must be disheartening. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this: <https://youtu.be/dQQnH-A0fug>
【STANDUP】FUN IN QUARANTINE! Coronavirus Charity Standup Show 【单口喜剧】隔离那些事 公益支援脱口秀演出
*** DONATE NOW *** https://www.gofundme.com/f/medical-supplies-for-wuhan-doctors-amp-victims这是2月12号在美国公益脱口秀演出的脱口秀段子！本场演出成功募捐8万+人民币 购买了50多箱医用品寄到武汉了！Bits from ...

William With growing global military tenseness and other unpleasantness, an understanding of the role of the Kengun Self-Defense Force base is useful. I had the opportunity to teach there for several years so am slightly familiar with its workings. Not many are aware that it is the headquarters of the SDF Western Army, in charge of defense of Japanese territory from Okinawa (including those islets in dispute with Taiwan and China) through Kyushu. This, of course, makes Kumamoto a prime target should missiles begin to fly.
The first link is to an English Wikipedia entry on the Western Army. The second is to a short Japanese Wikipedia entry on Camp Kengun itself which traces its origins as a Mitsubishi fighter plane manufacturing facility from 1941 (the facility used to have an airstrip so as to get its product off the ground) to its present role.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Army_(Japan)
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%81%A5%E8%BB%8D%E9%A7%90%E5%B1%AF%E5%9C%B0
Western Army (Japan) - Wikipedia
The Western Army (西部方面隊) is one of five active Armies of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. It is headquartered in Kumamoto, Kumamoto Prefecture. Its responsibility is the defense of Kyūshū and Okinawa.

Hi Atsuko here with some information about Kumamoto flower EXPO 🌷🌼.
At the Kumamoto Flower Expo, you can not only enjoy looking at flowers, but also take part in woodworking and bamboo lighting workshops.
The bamboo lights workshop's organizer is ちかけん Chikaken, which makes bamboo lights for Mizuakari and the Christmas Market in Kumamoto.
You can make woodwork in the 立田山Tatsutayama area and bamboo lighting in the downtown area. Both are free and you can take what you make home with you. You may make two bamboo lights and one will be displayed at the Kumamoto Flower Expo.
The event is held on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.
(Woodworking)
Details. What you'll make differs depending on the day.
https://kumaryokkafair.com/event/detail/1566.php
https://kumaryokkafair.com/event/detail/1567.php
https://kumaryokkafair.com/event/detail/1625.php
https://kumaryokkafair.com/event/detail/1595.php
(Bamboo lights making workshop)
Time:1) 11:00~12:30 2) 12:30~14:00 3) 14:00~15:30
Participation fee: Free (2 pieces will be made, one for display and one to take home)
Location:Shimodori arcade, in front of COCOSA SHIMOTORI
March 20 and April 24: near Sansuitei, Kamidori Arcade
Application method: Accepted on the day of application (Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis starting 30 minutes prior to each session)
https://kumaryokkafair.com/event/detail/1729.php
https://kumaryokkafair.com/
Hoping lots of people enjoy it.(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
[Shared post's translation.]
Tatsutayama Area [Woodworking Class]
There are two sessions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, but every time there is a line before registration opens! (First come, first served)
Folding chair, sliding bookshelf, mini chair
The workshop is a free woodworking workshop where participants can make three types of wood.
Parents were amazed at the children's nail-hammering skills!
The children are overjoyed when they finish 😊.
It would be happy if you could feel the fun of making things.
(The things you make will change depending on the day of the event. hp for more information)
Machinaka Area [Bamboo Lighting Workshop]
It is being held in the arcade near Sansuitei on the upper street!
Looks like a lot of customers enjoyed making bamboo lights yesterday! ☺.
Let's make it together for the lighting of bamboo lights along the long wall of Kumamoto Castle from May 7!
（You can even make your own to take home...)
Please enjoy the KUMAMOTO HANA HAKU 🥰🌸🌷 in the middle of three consecutive holidays.

The official beginning of the cherry blossom season was declared in Kumamoto today, a couple days earlier than normal. -- Kirk
桜「開花宣言」、平年より２日早く　熊本地方気象台　満開の見込みは…｜熊本日日新聞社
　熊本地方気象台は２０日、県内で桜（ソメイヨシノ）が開花したと発表した。平年より２日早く、昨年より３日遅い。今後１週間から１０日ほどで満開を迎えると見込んでいる。

Kirk here with what I think is a sort of "fun fact" about this Facebook page: After Kumamoto City, the city with the most people who "like" it is . . . drum role . . . Bangkok, Thailand! Fukuoka is next followed by Yangon, Myanmar. Most of the other facts about who "likes" this page are not particularly surprising. We have a fairly even split between men and women, and, as an old guy, I'm in a distinct minority.
Since the strong showing by Bangkok and Yangon, Nairobi, Lima, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Dar es Salaam is a little surprising to me I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all of you from those cities for your participation and invite you to say hello in a comment. I'd love to here from you. :)
By the way, the data I'm sharing here is from something called "insights." Facebook shows data like this to people who edit a page but not to participants, unfortunately.

Kirk with one more bit of zoo/botanical garden news. Starting today, a sloth (namakemono in Japanese) will be doing its thing (which is usually not much) in a tropical greenhouse. So, vistors to the greenhouse will see the sloth (if they can find it; it tends to blend in to its environment) on a tree or whereever it chooses to be -- not behind glass or bars.
https://kumanichi.com/articles/565601
In case you missed them, here are some links to previous posts about the zoo/botanical garden:
Red panda:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/7033193030087402
90,000 flowers:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/7033193030087402
新たな仲間、見に来てね　熊本市動植物園にナマケモノとヒョウモンガメ｜熊本日日新聞社
　熊本市動植物園（東区健軍）に２月上旬、中南米のジャングルに生息するフタユビナマケモノの「ベビドン」（雄、１歳５カ月）と、アフリカを代表するリクガメのヒョウモンガメ３匹が来園した。３月１９日開幕の「全...

Kirk here with news of some new residents of the Kumamoto City Zoo: Two red pandas (one male, one female).
https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/72c5ed9954f96057ee71cc52a090f7370e970434
I'm not sure when public viewing will start but I imagine that day is not far away.
In Japanese, these animals are called "lesser pandas" (as opposed to giant pandas) but I learned from Wikipedia today that they are actually more closely related to raccoons than to giant pandas, although both like bamboo, and both can be extremely cute. There are lots of video compilations of cute red pandas on YouTube. Here's one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPKab2d4_Xw

Kirk here with news about Kumamoto City's botanical garden (part of the zoo near Ezuko; 動植物園). Starting tomorrow the botanical garden will reopen with a flower bed of 90,000 flowers. The current arrangement will continue (presumably with some seasonal adjustments) until May 22. There will also be exhibits about the flora and fauna of the Ezuko area.
I don't plan to go tomorrow (I prefer to avoid crowds) but I'm pretty sure my wife and I will make a point of checking it out before it closes.
All of the sources I was able to find are in Japanese but, even if you're not a confident speaker of the language, the video in the NHK article should give you a good idea of what to expect.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/lnews/kumamoto/20220317/5000015032.html
https://www.asahi.com/articles/photo/AS20220317003082.html
https://kumanichi.com/articles/590079
９万株の大花壇お披露目　開幕迫る花博、「植物ゾーン」リニューアル　｜熊本日日新聞社
　国内最大級の花とみどりの祭典「全国都市緑化フェア（くまもと花博）」が１９日、熊本市内３カ所のメイン会場で開幕する。同市と公益財団法人都市緑化機構の主催。１７日は、会場の一つとなる水前寺江津湖公園一帯...

Kirk here with a screenshot of one of the pictures from an Asahi Shimbun article entitled "Powerful quake raises nightmare specter of 2011 disaster." Of course, seeing castle walls destroyed reminded my 2016, not 2011.
Actually, today happened to be my day to get vaccinated at the KKR Hotel, which is very near the castle. On my way back I walked through the castle grounds. The repaired keep (tenshukaku) is looking very good but the castle walls are still largely in disarray because each stone must be located and put back in exactly the same position. For that reason, many of the crumbled walls have not been touched since the quake and now lots of plants can be seen growing in the crevices between the stones. It's perfectly natural but rather sad looking just the same.
Sendai Castle was build in 1601 (just a year after Kumamoto Castle) by Date Masamune, a figure as important to the people of Sendai as Kato Kiyomasa is to Kumamoto.
I'm thinking of the people of north-eastern Japan today and hoping for the best.
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14575010

Hi Atsuko with some beautiful Sakura pictures.
The most commonly seen cherry blossom tree in Japan is ソメイヨシノSomeiyoshino.
The 大寒桜 Ookan-zakura blooms a little earlier than Someiyoshino.
These pictures are of one and the same cherry tree, Ookan-zakura. They are white at the beginning of blooming and turn deep pink when in full bloom.
I was also impressed by the beauty and interesting changes of the Ookanzakura for the first time this year, so I would like to share them with you.╰(*´︶`*)╯
Ookan-zakura@Kengun elementary school.
Someiyoshino are expected to bloom around the 20th in Kumamoto.

(Fiona) It's springtime in Kumamoto and the city is in bloom. Shimotori arcade has flower displays representing the prefectures of Japan and beginning Saturday March 19th various events are organised around the city.

Kirk here with news about Yubeni (ゆうべに) strawberries (and other varieties), produced here in Kumamoto.
Why 1 packet of Japanese strawberries in S’pore can cost so much, explained

Kirk here with some local / international shochu news:
"In the final, the cocktail 'Fit for Himiko,' created by Kira Webster from Missouri, came in second place. She added ingredients including pistachio liquor and vermouth to the rice shochu 'Yachiyoza,' which is distilled by Chiyonosono Sake Brewery Inc. in the city of Yamaga, Kumamoto Prefecture."
By the way, when rice shochu is made, they first make a form of sake (rice wine) and then distill that. Chiyononosono is well-known for their sake.
Bartenders in US compete in cocktail contest using Japanese 'shochu' liquor - The Mainichi
MIYAZAKI -- A unique drink using coconut, almond and even vinegar-flavored rice won the first edition of a cocktail contest using Japanese

William Wheat prices were rising globally even before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, known as "the grain basket of the world," providing more than a quarter of the world's supply, but as Kumanichi points out, "the government selling price of imported wheat to flour milling companies will be raised by 17.3% from the current price from April." This is obviously bad news for those who love bread and udon (and for bakeries and udon shops), but fortunately we in Japan have options. Expect to see more rice-based bakery goods.
Of more impact will be on countries such as Egypt, where Russian wheat is a staple of their nan-based culture, essential to so many living at the margin. I do not know what they will do. The Aljazeera article has an inforgraphic about where wheat comes from and where it goes.
https://kumanichi.com/articles/586572
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/17/infographic-russia-ukraine-and-the-global-wheat-supply-interactive
Infographic: Russia, Ukraine and the global wheat supply
More than a quarter of the world’s wheat exports come from Russia and Ukraine.

There's a Games/Communication Day at the International Center・熊本国際交流 on this Saturday, 19th March! 英語を練習しますか?いくつかのゲームを楽しみたいですか? Doors open at 1.45pm. It's aimed at high school students and up✨🙋‍♂️🎲📝🙆‍♀️ See the posters for more details!! 高校生以上・3月19日(土)の午後14時から・受付は13時45分から - Ruth