Posts

SHISEI DAYORI May issue
Re: Tax info for Salaried workers
http://www.kumamoto-if.or.jp/topics/topics_detail.asp?PageID=5&ID=7809&pg=1&sort=0&LC=e
Kumamoto International Foundation
The City will send decision notifications for collection of special residence tax amount to be levied for the year of 2015 (for both employers and employees) to employers in the middle of May. Employers must give to each employee, the decision notification intended for employee by May 31 without ope…

The picture is not of actual food but plastic, model food, for which Japan is famous. There's a place in Kumamoto City where you and your friends can try your hands at making fake food. The picture is actually a screenshot of the YouTube video on the site, which shows some high school students learning about food forgery. Here's a link to the English page:
http://www.kumamoto-icb.or.jp.e.mh.hp.transer.com/map/pub/detail.aspx?c_id=13&id=197&pg=1&mst=26
This English page is a machine translation of the original Japanese page:
http://www.kumamoto-icb.or.jp/map/pub/detail.aspx?c_id=13&id=197&pg=1&mst=26
This information comes from a site that introduces various things you can experience in Kumamoto. I wrote a bit about this site in an earlier post:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/insights/?section=navPosts

SHISEI DAYORI May issue
Re: Vaccinations of Measles and Rubella
http://www.kumamoto-if.or.jp/topics/topics_detail.asp?PageID=5&ID=7806&pg=1&sort=0&LC=e
Kumamoto International Foundation

The other day I posted this photo album. For a limited time (if I leave this up too long, I may get in trouble), I've decided to share the actual video. I'll probably take it down early Saturday morning so, if you'd like to see what the fuss was about, stream or download the video while you can:
http://www2.kumagaku.ac.jp/teacher/~masden/2015/0511/index.html

SHISEI DAYORI May issue
Re: Group Collection of Recyclable Garbage
http://www.kumamoto-if.or.jp/topics/topics_detail.asp?PageID=5&ID=7803&pg=1&sort=0&LC=e
Kumamoto International Foundation
Group collection of recyclable wastes, such as newspapers, magazines, bottles, cans, etc., generates sales profit as well as subsidies that are given to your group. ○ Eligible group: Nonprofit organizations composed of residents of the city of Kumamoto, such as residents’ associations, neighborhood…

Joe Tomei here
I've located a climbing gym/wall here in Kumamoto, located at
http://www.theranchgym.com/
My youngest daughter would like to try it, so I'm wondering if there are any folks with some rock/wall climbing experience who would like to join us on a weekday evening.
熊本のクライミング、ボルダリングジム、ショップです。

Here's another video by long-time Kumamoto International participant and videographer Douglas Bruce. Enjoy!
https://vimeo.com/117749211
Taiko Competition, Kumamoto, Japan
Done a few yers ago, I have dusted off this compilation, showing most of the Taiko (Japanese drums) groups that took part in this annual competition.

Here's another Oguni-area onsen report.
http://kurokawa-onsen.com/onsen-hop-8-oyado-noshiyu/
Onsen-hop # 8 `Oyado Noshiyu`
Just a stone`s throw from the bustling Visitor Center and full-to-capacity car park I was surprised to find the Oyado Noshiyu Inn grounds quiet and peaceful on

I'm sharing this in the hope that it will help more people see it.

This was just shared on the page. Here's a link to another article about how this is hitting quite close to Kumamoto, in Sendai, Kagoshima -- just over 50 kilometers from Minamata City:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/04/22/national/crime-legal/looming-ruling-sendai-reactor-restart-injunction-embolden-nuclear-foes/
Japan's renewable revolution at risk - BBC News
Japan has seen a revolution in renewable energy-use since the Fukushima disaster, so why is Prime Minister Shinzo Abe so keen to turn the nuclear reactors back on?

In view of how rare it is to meet an openly gay person in Japan, this survey result is really quite amazing.
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20150506_04.html
Japan survey: 7.6% are sexual minorities - News - NHK WORLD - English
A survey by a leading Japanese advertising agency suggests that one out of 13 respondents can be classified as sexual minorities.

Here's another article about the World Heritage site issue:
"The Miike coal mine, which straddles Kumamoto and Fukuoka prefectures, is among the 'Sites of the Meiji Industrial Revolution' that were endorsed for listing as a World Heritage site by a UNESCO advisory panel, the Japanese government said on May 4."
The proposal is not without controversy. Korea has voiced concern about the history of forced labor at some of the sites, including the Miike site in Kumamoto. Here's something from an article on the Miike coal mine:
"When the Japanese military machine invaded China in 1931, many of the labourers working in the mine were taken as cannon-fodder. The resulting shortage of labour became acute and, in order to make up the shortfall, the company used Koreans and, later, Chinese prisoners of war. In reality these people were subjected to the same harsh treatment that had been meted out to the former prisoners."
http://archive.unu.edu/unupress/unupbooks/uu35ie/uu35ie0f.htm
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201505060059
Visitors flock to prospective World Heritage sites across Japan - AJW by The Asahi Shimbun
Tourists crowded Meiji industrial facilities on May 5, a day after the sites, considered instrumental in Japan’s modernization, moved a step closer to UNESCO World Heritage listing.

One more from Joe Tomei
The monthly meeting of PIGATE, the Kumamoto teacher training group, co-sponsored by the NanKyu JALT chapter, will be this Saturday at Kumamoto Gakuen University, Building 1, 1F English Lounge.
The meeting will feature three secondary teachers presenting on various topics. Mio Ebara will discuss Canadian approaches to reading education that she saw in her one year stay there, Tomomi Nishioka will discuss Ken Toyama's English Grammar textbook, while Hisao Kobori will introduce his use of Extensive reading at his JHS.
Anyone interested in English Education is welcome. Any questions, please contact me at tomeiter(at)gmail.com

Joe Tomei here.
Two useful things I found from a blog. First is a nice detailed explanation of how to renew your US passport by mail if you are living in Japan.
http://farfromhome.ducsu.com/blog/49/how-to-renewing-us-passport-while-in-japan.html
Not a Kumamoto thing, but came across this on the same blog: http://www.fujisan3776.com/index_en.html
which lets you get a certificate if you climb Mt. Fuji. The blogger has a photo of the certificate here
http://imageshack.us/a/img571/5476/5vl3.jpg
and the blog post is here
http://farfromhome.ducsu.com/blog/59/mia-but-not-gone.html
certificate for summit of Mt.Fuji. noboru noboru fujisan
noboru noboru FUJISAN is an internet service for the publication and ordering of a certificate for climbing to the summit of Mt. Fuji.

Good news for dog lovers (and for dogs :) ):
"But ongoing schemes, such as one in Kumamoto, involve not only rehoming animals, but also reducing the number of animals given to shelters in the first place, through training and by encouraging owners to take personal responsibility. Encouraged by Kumamoto City’s example, Peace Winds Japan has set the ambitious goal of reducing the number of animals put to death in Hiroshima City to zero."
http://en.rocketnews24.com/2015/05/05/rescued-dog-becomes-rescue-dog-as-hiroshima-stray-joins-search-for-survivors-in-nepal/
Rescued dog becomes rescue dog as Hiroshima stray joins search for survivors in Nepal
In the wake of the massive earthquake that struck central Nepal last week, non-profit organisation Peace Winds Japan sent a small team of six rescuers and two specially trained dogs to help with the search for survivors. Remarkably, one of the search dogs who was dispatched to Kathmandu is himself a…

The Mainichi newpaper article says that locals "hailed the UNESCO advisory panel's recommendation on May 4 for listing the 'Sites of Japan's Meiji Industrial Revolution' as a World Heritage site." The Manda Coal Mine in Arao is one of the sites that has been designated.
Mainichi article:
http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150505p2a00m0na003000c.html
Information in English about Manda Coal Mine
http://arao-kankou.jp/english/manda_coalmine/
The Manda Coal Mine | Arao sightseeing information site
Industrial heritage that once supported the development of modern Japan

--- start quote ---
KUMAMOTO — In December of last year, Toyota Motor Corp. invested in Kajitsudo Co., which produces baby leaf vegetables for salads and is based in Mashiki, Kumamoto Prefecture.
--- snip ---
By accumulating data on factors such as water and manure volumes, moisture content in the soil and growth speeds, the company calculates the optimal conditions for cultivation.
--- end quote ---
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002105295
IT breathes new life into farming
Growth in the agricultural sector ranks among the highest contributors to local vitalization, and agricultural start-up companies have been flourishing in many places.

Official unlocking began on May 1st.

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002123816
Unlocking SIMs expected to lower user costs
Competition in the mobile phone industry is expected to heat up now that providers must allow customers to unlock the subscriber identity module (SIM) cards in their cell phones.

The volcanic activity in Mt. Aso caused a small earthquake in the area on the evening of May 3rd. It was the first such earthquake to be recorded in nearly 20 years.
Here's a link to the TKU report from which the image was taken:
http://www.tku.co.jp/web/news_article/阿蘇中岳%E3%80%80２０年ぶり火山性微動で震度１?iframe=true&width=560&height=420
or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsWccZq99Ag
Here's a link to another Japanese report with a video of a TV report:
http://www.fnn-news.com/news/headlines/articles/CONN00291724.html

I'm sharing this in the hope that doing so will help more people see it.