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This NHK video won't last long so. If you were there or think you know someone who was, check out the video before it's taken down.
-- Kirk
留学生が熊本の生活を語り合う会｜NHK 熊本県のニュース
世界各国から来た留学生たちが、熊本での日々の生活で感じていることなどを伝え合う交流会が、開かれました。 ２７日、熊本城に隣接する観光施設…

Looking for something else, I stumbled upon this page which contains exquisite photos of the castle one year following the quakes. The site author is anonymous, though he did note, "85kg→78kg 達成！体の故障でリバウンド。84kg→70kgに再挑戦中。" ("I'd succeeded in slimming down from 85kg to 78kg! Then I rebounded due to injury. Next I will challenge 84kg to 70kg.")
Best of luck with that from all of us at Kumamoto International, mysterious photographer - and thank you! - William
http://blog.skeg.jp/archives/2017/04/kumamoto-castle-20170409.html

"About 100 participants were from other countries, including China and Thailand."
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180325_16/
-- Kirk
'Kumamon' race held in Kumamoto- News - NHK WORLD - English
About 1,300 people took part in a run on Sunday to support the reconstruction of Kumamoto Prefecture, which was hit by earthquakes 2 years ago.

The video is in English but probably won't be available for long. Apologies in advance if the link goes dead.
-- Kirk
Part of Kumamoto Castle opened for blossom viewing- News - NHK WORLD - English
Local residents and tourists are visiting Kumamoto Castle in southwestern Japan to view cherry blossoms in a picturesque setting.

William has already written about this at
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/1834304096643014
"During questioning, Akiyama said that he got into a dispute with the victim. 'I beat him several times,” the suspect was quoted. “I didn’t know he would die.'"
-- Kirk
Kumamoto cops nab 3 over fatal beating of male acquaintance | The Tokyo Reporter
Suspect, who admitted to repeatedly beating the victim in the head, told police, 'I didn't know he would die'

In addition to discussing recent restoration efforts, this article also includes a lot of historical information, including an overview of the Seinan civil war of 1877. -- Kirk
Restoration of Kumamoto Castle progressing
Two tenshukaku main castle towers — one large, one small — were covered by scaffolds for restoration work. A crane stood high beside them. The castle’s appearance was upsetting but conveyed a sense of dignity as well.

Kirk had asked for suggestions re: good hanami spots. This is one of my favorites. About halfway up Mt. Tatsuda is a reservoir called Tatsudayama Haisuiike (立田山配水池) fronted by a long, grassy, narrow park lined with cherry trees and affording a gorgeous view of Kumamoto. It is equipped with (limited, free) parking (and is not too far so is accessible be bike or foot), a public restroom, and really delicious water. Few people visit as, even though it is visible from the city as a pink gash on the green mountain, few know how to get there.
The below links should clue you in. And here is a photo of me with my dog Devo and wife Sawako taken there yesterday. - William
http://www.kumamoto-waterworks.jp/wp-content/uploads/07/gallery_07_1/photo_07_01.html
http://www.kumamoto-waterworks.jp/?waterworks_article=3086

"This Week" is an Indian publication that featured this essay on Kumamoto.
-- Kirk
A lesson in history
This peaceful city of Kumamoto has had a turbulent history

Kumamoto Castle Cherry Blossoms are in full bloom.
And the Miyuki Zaka Slope is open for public for today and tomorrow from 8:30-6pm.
The crowd were there but the beauty of cherry blossoms conquered them.
Hope you have chance to visit Kumamoto Castle soon!
-Olivia-

"Yana has announced plans to make an independent film set in Kumamoto Prefecture as part of efforts to support reconstruction from the devastating 2016 earthquakes."
http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201803230005.html
-- Kirk
Screen villain turns hero, makes indie film in quake-hit area：The Asahi Shimbun
KUMAMOTO--Seems like one of Japan's most famous baddies has had a change of heart.For decades, resid

If sneezing and freezing under the cherry blossoms isn't your thing, why not check out Kyushu's escape room scene this spring? People who know me well know that I can barely get through a conversation without the subject coming round to escape rooms, so it seems like the perfect topic for my first Kumamoto-i post. Admittedly, Kyushu doesn't have much of an escape room scene, but Fukuoka has an escape room close toTenjin that doesn't need any Japanese skills. Currently only one room (Wherehouse) is open but the company has three more in the pipeline. Visit escapegamesfukuoka.com to find out more! If you're confident in your Japanese ability, one of the pioneers of escape rooms, Ajito of Scrap, has a few games dotted around the country, wth English available at their Asakusa branch in Tokyo. Hop on a plane to Seoul, though, and you have a couple of dozen English-friendly escape rooms to choose from.
Fiona

The good news is that Kumamoto made Japan Today! The bad news is it did so because some guy allegedly beat up another guy until he died, left the building, returned, and called 119, pretending he'd just discovered the body. This all went down at a multi-occupancy entertainment building in not the best area of Suidocho. Video at the link.
The victim's name was 永松徳也, but the Japanese-language article linked to below contained an interesting note: " ※「松」は「ム」が「口」", meaning an unusual form of 松 which the authors couldn't be bothered to look up. It took me all of two seconds to find: 「柗」. Lazy reporters. We here at Kumamoto International will not rest until we correctly provide our loyal readers with ムs and 口s as appropriate. - William
http://rkk.jp/news/backno_page.php?id=NS003201803231504220111
https://japantoday.com/category/crime/dead-man-found-in-office-of-kumamoto-city-building
熊本市の雑居ビルに男性遺体　通報の男逮捕｜熊本のニュース｜RKK熊本放送
九州熊本のラジオ＆テレビ放送局！(TBSテレビ系列) Ustream/Twitter/Facebook/foursquare にアクセス！

Looks like Kikuchi Gorge will reopen this tomorrow (Saturday). Good news!
http://kumanago.jp/whatsnew/?mode=detail&id=499
-- Kirk
　熊本地震により被災し、閉鎖していた菊池渓谷が、復旧工事が進み、再開の環境が整ったことから、平成３０年３月２４日（土）午前８時３０分から開園されることとなりました。　　　◆　復旧工事の状況（県関係）　...

"The long campaign of power harassment continued between September 2015 and October 2017, according to Kumamoto prefectural police."
http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201803220032.html
-- Kirk
Police sergeant forced junior officers to eat superhot noodles：The Asahi Shimbun
KUMAMOTO--A police sergeant who bullied junior officers by making them eat extremely hot fried noodl

Joe Tomei with Funky Places Friday, a fit to be Thaied edition. There are a few Thai restaurants in Kumamoto, but this one introduced to me by a former student of mine, Hiroko Ogata, is in a location that is truly difficult to explain. You may want to use the get directions button on their facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/soimarny/
or check out the Tabelog page
https://tabelog.com/en/kumamoto/A4301/A430101/43012722/
You can see all the Funky Places Friday here
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1qUH94Bac7Hr939b7_8gtvebaJZffGRsX&usp=sharing
and any suggestions, put them in the comments.

Hi! This is not Kumamoto specific but since this is a Facebook page, I think it may be of interest to many readers. I referred to the instructions here to delete about half of the apps I had accumulated over time.
" . . . if you’ve been following the news around Cambridge Analytica, the data consultancy firm hired by the Donald Trump campaign for the 2016 US election that harvested the data of up to 50 million Facebook users without their permission through data collected from third-party apps, you may want to know how to make sure that something similar isn’t happening to you."
-- Kirk
Here’s how to check which apps have access to your Facebook account—and delete them
Even the apps your friends install can be sending information on you to other companies.

Joe Tomei here with a little oya baka (doting parent) action. The Kumamoto Gakuen Fuzoku HS/JHS brass band is having their annual concert on 30 March (Friday) at the Kumamoto Prefectural Theatre (Kenritsu Gekijo). Doors open at 17:30, concert starts at 18:00 and entry is free. This concert is the brassband teacher, Yokoi sensei's, last concert before retiring. Both my daughters will be playing, Lana for the JHS, and Tabatha for the OB/OG.

Three pieces of news about Kumamoto Station, which is in the midst of major redevelopment.
1. Track elevation freed a large amount of space. JR utilized 7,500 square meters of this space to create a new shopping and dining area targeted at travelers called (of course) "Higo Yokamon Shijo (market)" 「肥後よかモン市場」which contains 33 shops selling souvenirs from Kumamoto and 18 restaurants serving local delicacies. It is located beneath the tracks between the local and Shinkansen stations.
2. With track elevation complete, attention is now directed at the station building itself. Changes will include:
A) increased bus and taxi loading areas, all sheltered by covered walkways to the station;
B) a 1.6 times size increase of the outside concourse to provide space for live events;
C) a redesigned interior to ease the flow between local lines and the Shinkansen;
D) improved traffic flow around the area;
E) a new facade which is designed to mimic the curved shape of the castle walls (known as "turn back samurai" (mushagaeshi, 「武者返し」, planned for completion in 2021. The striking design is by renowned architect Ando Tadao (安藤 忠雄).
3. Also planned for completion in 2021 is a 12-story building to the south of the station which will house retail and entertainment space (including a multiplex theater) and a hotel. JR announced recently that it is investigating building a 10-story building to the north of the station that will house office space.
The two images below are of the planned station layout and new station facade, and the links are to the relevant Kumanichi articles which have larger, better images.The changes will be introduced in stages, with the facade expected to be completed in the spring of 2021. I expect it will change the face and flow of the city tremendously and also indirectly have a great effect on Shinmachi, the area between the station and the castle. Exciting times! - William
https://this.kiji.is/347998069536736353?c=92619697908483575
https://this.kiji.is/347561653061993569?c=92619697908483575
https://this.kiji.is/347982959401731169?c=92619697908483575

Happy Vernal Equinox Day to all our Kumamoto International friends!
Here is a GIF showing the Earth rotate on its tilted axis. Kinda surprising we're not all throwing up, isn't it? - this is some carnival ride we all share. The GIF might prove useful when you're asked if your home country has four seasons too, as you eventually will be. - William

This information about Japanese classes came to me in a "'Safe and Secure' Disaster Response/Living Information E-mail Magazine (No.78) 2018/3/10" from the Kumamoto International Foundation. If you would like to receive such e-mails I think you may need to contact them (there's no information about signing up for or unsubscribing from the service in each e-mail).
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*Nihongo Club
Date and Time:
Tuesdays from 10:00~11:30
Wednesdays from 10:00~12:00, 14:00~16:00, 18:30~20:00
Sundays form 10:00~12:00, 14:00~16:00
Let’s study Japanese for daily life!
Feel free to contact us if you are interested.
Target Audience: international citizens of Kumamoto City
Fee: 100 yen (1 day)
*Japanese class in Musashi-gaoka,Kengun and Higashiku-Nihongo Club
How about joining a Japanese language class right in your own neighborhood?
・Musashi-gaoka: Tuesdays at Kikuyo-macchi Seibu Cho-min Ceter (Near Mikari-no-Mori JrStation) from 10:00a.m. to 11:30a.m.
・Kengun: Tuesdays at Yotte kanne (at the Kengun Shopping Arcade) from 10:00a.m. to 11:30a.m.
・Higashi-ku Kurashi Nihongo Club(Starting NEW!)
1st and 3rd Sunday of every month at East Community Center from 10:00a.m-11:30a.m
If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Multicultural Affairs Office (2F) at Kumamoto City International Foundation (Kumamoto City International Center).
(TEL) 096-359-4995 (9a.m.～8p.m.)
(e-mail）[email protected]
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