Posts

Kirk here. This sad national news has an important Kumamoto connection:
"Japanese media reported that the helicopter left radar scopes at approximately 1630L and that it belonged to Vice-Camp Takayubara in Kumamoto."
JGSDF Vice-Camp Takayubaru (陸上自衛隊 高遊原分屯地) is on the grounds of Kumamoto Airport.
JGSDF Commander Missing, Helicopter Crash, Okinawa
At approximately 0503 EST, reports began to emerge of a Japanese Ground Self Defense Force UH-60 Blackhawk gone missing off the coast of Miyakojima, Okinawa. Japanese media reported that the helico…

Kirk here reporting that 7.8% was high enough to put Kumamoto on top in the area of bicycle helmet use:
"Kumamoto Prefecture in the country's southeast had the highest rate of any prefecture at 7.8 percent, while Hyogo Prefecture had the lowest at 1.9 percent. The figures for Tokyo and Osaka were 5.6 and 2.4 percent respectively."
Japanese survey: only 4% wear helmets on bikes | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News
On April 1, Japan introduced an ordinance encouraging all bicycle riders, regardless of age, to wear helmets. The measure goes into effect amid a growing number of accidents across the country.

Kirk here with crime news. This is a wooden statue of Pindola Bharadvaja, known as Binzuru Sonja (びんずる尊者) in Japanese. It was located in Zenkoji (a temple) in Nagano until it was stolen this morning, apparently by a man from Mifune. The statue has been recovered with the arrest of the man and, according to reports I heard, has not been harmed.
Here's a paragraph from Wikipedia about Pindola Bharadvaja:
"Pindola Bharadvaja is an Arhat in Buddhism. According to the earliest Indian Buddhist sutras, Pindola Bharadvaja was one of four Arhats asked by the Buddha to remain in the world to propagate Buddhist law. Each of the four was associated with one of the four compass directions."
The faithful are allowed to touch the statue, wearing down the surface of the wood. It is believed that touching part of the statue will heal the corresponding part on your own body.
The image was taken from this page:
https://www.zenkoji.jp/about/jin/

Johannes here from Minamiaso.
There will be a guided walk April 23, 2023 in the Kurokawa area near Tateno, where the Tokai University’s school for agriculture was located until the Kumamoto earthquake in April 2016.
The tour is in Japanese and not explicitly for foreigners, but I can assist with possible language issues, since I will be present.
The area is still suffering from the aftermath of the earthquake (80% of the population has left and reconstruction is slow due to the special geological characteristics of the area) and is also the site of the Kumamoto Earthquake Museum, which will open this summer.
Participation costs ¥2000 (children ¥1000) and includes a bentō made by local residents, accident insurance and the guided tour. The maximum number of attendants is limited to 40 people. (first come, first serve)
Details of the event can be found on the Minamiaso website.
https://www.vill.minamiaso.lg.jp/kiji0032392/index.html

Kirk here with belated news (a few weeks old) about international high school trips resuming. This article is about students from Luther High School traveling to Korea.
Japanese high school students arrive in Korea on field trip : Korea.net : The official website of the Republic of Korea
Students from Luther Senior High School in Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture on the afternoon of March 21 wave hello after arriving at Incheon International Airport.

Kirk with something about the Unzen-Amakusa National Park, which "sprawls across both Nagasaki and Kumamoto prefectures." To be honest, when this page came up in a search for "Kumamoto," I hesitated to share it because I thought that it was merely "near" Kumamoto. I found, though, that, as the article states, the national park actually straddles the two prefectures -- something I had missed, somehow. Most of the article is about the Nagasaki side but that is just a short ferry trip away via Kumamoto Port. I've been to the area many times and would encourage anyone who hasn't been there to check it out. :)
A Cheat Sheet to Unzen, Japan’s Oldest National Park - The AU Review
Discover the best new music, travel, film, gaming, arts, food, culture and book content on Australia's premier independent online publication. Since 2008.

Kirk here, sharing a post to the "Community" side of the page.
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/8879256522147701

Atsuko here. International gourmet event information.(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
World Gourmet FES 2023 supported
by FMK X
A gourmet food festival featuring the world's favourite cuisines from the USA, France, Korea, Japan, Mexico, Jamaica, Italy and many more.
Let's eat our way through the world's finest cuisines!
Date 1 (Sat) & 2 (Sun) April Time 9:00~17:00
Venue: Kumamoto Agricultural Park Country Park (3802-4 Sakae, Koshi City, Kumamoto Prefecture)
Instagram→@straights.jp

Update from Kirk: This was an April Fools post. It originally showed an image of the famous onnagata Bando Tamasaburo in a poster calling for a ban on cross-dressing. The post received a complaint. I spoke for about an hour with a Japanese LGBTQ friend of mine about whether the post was appropriate. She thought it was funny and understood what I was getting at. She also said that she thinks it's probably true that a significant number of LGBTQ folks in Japan might not enjoy the joke -- especially because one has to read a lot of text in order to fully understand the intent. So, I decided to remove the image (it's replaced now by an image from an article about the Tennessee law).
--- original text of post (slightly edited) ---
Kirk here with some news about what seems to be an international trend. As you may be aware, Republicans in Tennessee have passed "anti-drag" legislation (it was a straight party-line vote):
Tennessee Passed the Nation’s First Law Limiting Drag Shows. Here’s the Status of Anti-Drag Bills Across the U.S.
https://time.com/6260421/tennessee-limiting-drag-shows-status-of-anti-drag-bills-u-s/
Well, according to the Japanese article I'm sharing, folks in Kumamoto with similar concerns have started putting up posters decrying the gender confusion caused among children who are exposed to onnagata performances (kabuki performances where men play the parts of alluring females). Heaven forbid!
The poster reads "Protect Kumamoto's children! Men dressing up like women is just wrong!" and has a picture of famed onnagata Bando Tamasaburo wearing a Yamaga toro (paper lantern).
I'm pretty sure the report is credible for two reasons:
1) There's a picture associated with the article and I think the existence of a picture pretty much proves that it's real;
2) It's on the internet and I believe everything I find on the internet.
On the other hand, the following points do give me some pause:
1) It's on a site called "kirkmasden.com," which I've never heard of before;
2) The website doesn't look much like a typical internet news service;
3) The first line of the article says "April fools!," which does tend to make me slightly suspicious.
Happy April 1st!
これはエープリルフール（欧米の習慣で、四月一日は嘘をついてもよい日として楽しむこと）の投稿です。
熊本で「女装禁止運動」は起きていませんが、アメリカのテネシー州で「ドラァグ」（異性装）のショーなどを禁止する法律が制定されたことは事実です。また、テネシー州だけでなく、他の州でも同様の法律の制定が検討されているそうです。そのニュースを聞いて「歌舞伎の女形や宝塚などの文化はテネシー州では違法になるのか」と思い、そうした法律を揶揄するエープリルフールのFacebook投稿を準備することにしました。からかいたい相手はあくまでも女装などに神経を尖らせる心の狭い政治家などで、日本の伝統芸術としての女形や人間国宝の坂東玉三郎様などを一切揶揄しているつもりはありません。ご了承ください。
Here’s the Status of Anti-Drag Bills Across the U.S.
Tennessee became the first state to explicitly ban drag shows in public spaces

Kirk here with a little article about the completion of a new government building in Mashiki -- another step on the road to complete recovery from the 2016 quakes.
New Building for Quake-Hit Kumamoto Town Completed
Mashiki, Kumamoto Pref., March 28 (Jiji Press)--A ceremony was held Tuesday to mark the completion of a new bu…

Kirk here with an article I found to be interesting. It explains how high tech, like image processing, is being used to help sort the fallen stones so that they can be reassembled as they were before the quakes. It also explains that, though technology can help with some jobs, much of the work must be done by hand, just as it was done some 400 years ago. For that reason, estimates of how long it will take to finish all of the work have been extended:
--- start quote ---
Kumamoto city estimated the castle’s renovation expenditure at 63.4 billion yen ($482 million) shortly after the 2016 disaster. The forecast reconstruction period has already been extended and the work is expected to continue for the next three decades.
--- end quote ---
Technology helping rebuild fallen Kumamoto Castle walls | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis
KUMAMOTO--Left devastated and in ruins by a spate of strong earthquakes seven years ago, iconic Kumamoto Castle is rising from the ashes.

Kirk with news of a belated settlement related to a local suicide that would probably have not occurred if it hadn't been for bullying. After five years, the bullies have all agreed to settle on terms that the parents have accepted. The article ends with links and phone numbers to help English speakers who are in crisis.
4 ex-classmates settle with parents over teen's suicide after school bullying in Japan
KUMAMOTO -- The parents of a high school student who took her own life over bullying reached court-mediated settlements on March 27 with all four form･･･

Sean here – Update – Yuuka Family Road Bike Ride Update –
Currently, we have two adults and two high schoolers.
The weather looks promising.
It would be nice to get a couple more participants.
Yuuka family multi-use trail is an easy and safe trail to ride. It is a good trail for anyone new to Kumamoto who wants (or walk or run) to ride and not worry about getting lost. There is a kilometer marker at every KM. (See posted pic)
Event: Beginners Cycling Ride
Date: Sunday, April 2nd, 2023
Time: 10:00 AM (Approximately 5 hours round trip)
Where: Yuuka Family Road
Meeting place: Kami Kumamoto Eki.
Minimum 3 participants
Fee: Positive energy.
Contact: Sean Benward
イベント：初心者サイクリングライド
日程：2023年4月2日（日）
時間：10:00出発（往復約5時間の予定）
場所：ゆうかファミリーロード
集合場所：上熊本駅
催行人数：3名以上
参加費：ポジティブなエネルギー
連絡先：ショーン・ベンワード
これは、サイクリングに興味のある全ての初心者への招待状です。
特にスポーツとしてサイクリングに挑戦する機会があまりない10 代の若者に、ぜひ挑戦してもらいたくて企画しました。
彼らの何人かがもしかしたら将来、私と同じように情熱的なサイクリストになってくれるかも知れないと期待しています。
サイクリングは、高齢者でもできる数少ないスポーツの 1 つで、生涯の冒険として楽しめます。
ゆうかファミリーロードは初心者にもおすすめのコースです。
熊本から山鹿までの34kmのコースで、ウォーキング、ランニング、サイクリングなど多目的に使用できます。
ほとんどが平坦な田舎道で、農場、庭園、川があり、車が通らないので安全です。
目的地までの距離が1kmごとに表示されているので、移動距離を簡単に測ることができます。
道中、きっと桜も咲いていることでしょう。
もちろん、上級者も含めどなたでも参加可能ですが、ペースは一番遅いライダーに合わせますのでご注意ください。誰も置き去りにしません。
経験豊富なライダーの方は、世話役として参加してくれると嬉しいです。
This is an invitation to any beginner with an interest in cycling.
I would encourage teenagers as there are few opportunities for them to try cycling as a sport.
My hope would be to inspire some of them to join the ranks of us who are passionate cyclists. One of the few sports you can do at an old age, making it a lifelong adventure.
Yuuka Family Road is great for beginners.
It is a 34k multi-use walk, run, and cycling path from Kumamoto to Yamaga.
It is a mostly flat, country path with farms, gardens, and rivers. And NO CARS.
I am certain that there would be some cherry blossoms along the way as well.
It is easy to follow as there are signs at every kilometer telling you how you went and how far to go to your destination.
Of course, everyone is invited, including advanced riders, but keep in mind the pace is as fast as the slowest rider. No one left behind.
Depending on how many participate, a few extra experienced riders would be helpful as wranglers.
Please message me here if you are interested or have questions.

Atsuko here with information about Japanese language study groups.
It is a great opportunity for young children and their parents to study and discuss Japanese together. I also hope that the children will make friends with other children there, and that they will make friends with their mothers and fathers and exchange all sorts of information with them.
Hoping you will meet someone nice.(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
The first meeting will be on the 23rd of April.
Children from kindergarten age to grade 2 and their parents/guardians can participate.
The number of participants is limited to 10 children.
Those who wish to participate must apply by 9 April.
Apply to the plaza by email or phone.
✉: [email protected]
☎: 096-359-4995

Kirk here with an extensive article (over 1000 words) on the local impact of the construction of the new TSMC plant:

--- start quote ---
According to the benchmark land prices announced by the land ministry in September 2022, the price for the industrial area in Kikuyo rose 31.6% from the previous year, the highest rate of increase for all types of land across Japan.
“That’s probably an underestimate, as actual prices have already more than doubled,” one local real estate official noted.
--- end quote ---
TSMC’s Kumamoto plant tests Kyushu’s readiness to meet surging investment
The world's leading chip manufacturer has invested around ¥1 trillion in the construction of the sprawling industrial complex, which is expected to employ some 1,700 workers.

Kirk here with a photo I took of the cherry blossoms not far from Kumamoto Prefectural University. There are lots of famous spots but, when the weather is nice, if you can get out and cycle or walk you'll probably find plenty to enjoy in your neighborhood. :)

Kirk here with something about the Janes Mansion (Janes Residence; ジェーンズ亭) and German prisoners of war in WWI. The color photo is of the reconstructed Janes Mansion, which is looking quite nice now and will be open to the public this fall, as I understand it. For background on the historical importance of the residence see the following:
Reconstruction efforts begin Birthplace of Japanese Red Cross Society, "Janes' Residence"
https://www.jrc.or.jp/english/jrc_news/170401_004771.html
The second image is of German prisoners of war relaxing on the porch of the Janes Residence in during WWI. It's a screenshot of the following page:
https://www.asahi.com/articles/photo/AS20221129003101.html?iref=pc_photo_gallery_5
They got to stay in the Janes Residence because they were officers. Also, it seems that Japan was generally quite careful to adhere to the Hague Convention and not abuse POWs:
A Forgotten Tale of World War I: Life for German POWs in Japanese Camps
https://www.nippon.com/en/in-depth/a03303/
So, it seems that German officers had particularly nice accommodations in which to wait for the war to end.
P.S. It if often rendered the "Janes' Mansion" with an apostrophe to indicate the possessive, but that seems odd to me. Of course, "L.L. Janes' Mansion" is fine but when the family name modifies a word like "mansion" or "estate" in the name of a site, it seems to me that the possessive is out of place. As a case in point, it's the Vanderbilt Mansion, not the Vanderbilt's Mansion:
https://www.nps.gov/vama/index.htm

Kirk here with a share from Msn.com. Naturally, Mt. Aso is at the top of the list. Even if you live here and have been to the Mt. Aso area many times, a nice spring day like today might be a good occasion to take in the scenery in a new way -- perhaps a hike in an area you've never walked through. :)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/tripideas/10-reasons-why-kyushu-is-worth-visiting-best-things-to-do-kyushu-japan/ar-AA1962x1
10 Reasons Why Kyushu Is Worth Visiting: Best Things To Do Kyushu, Japan
Kyushu is Japan’s third-largest island and is known for its natural beauty, hot springs, and unique cultural experiences. While it may not be as popular as Tokyo or Kyoto, Kyushu is no less amazing and is 100% worth visiting! This region of Japan has plenty ... Read more

Kirk here with a report about research conducted at Kumamoto University. Kumamoto International editor Hari Devkota is one of the co-authors of the academic paper that led to this article being written but, unfortunately, the article fails to mention his contribution. :( Here's a link to the academic article (currently, the entire article is available free of charge):
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/3/581
And here's a link to a post on Hari's Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/devkotahp/posts/pfbid02Qk9okE1WYZ9RUJSsz2R59StWH1K8Ktm4WtKCFLibGkeyNQZgpQbtt8kWMBWuqhjJl
Finally, here's a post about an earlier stage in this research that I wrote in 2019:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid02UgwvipBMUveM142gG16aVE8X1XkU3hPL14VhfRLKPg6cEweaHfuMprQorcJUaZcKl
https://www.earth.com/news/matcha-tea-relieves-symptoms-of-depression/
Matcha tea relieves symptoms of depression

Kirk here with an English-language article and some comments about Ms. Linh's exculpation by the supreme court.
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20230324/p2g/00m/0na/032000c
First, I'd like to point out that I learned today that Google news searches are not as good as I thought they were. It seemed odd to me searching for "Kumamoto" via Google news failed to bring up any articles on this case so I tried DuckDuckGo. Well, DuckDuckGo was MUCH better. So, from now on, I'll check DuckDuckGo when looking for articles to share here.
Second, I read some Japanese-language articles on the ruling today and felt I came to understand something that I'd missed so far so I'd like to share that. From the outside, rulings found Ms. Linh guilty because the way she handled the tragedy was, supposedly, not in keeping with public sentiment (in Japan) about what it means to treat a corpse with proper respect. This seemed very odd to me, particularly because I didn't think it was reasonable to expect Ms. Linh to know about what is considered normal and proper in Japan. It turns about that this criterion, while not clearly spelled out in the criminal law itself, has long be applied in cases like this as a matter of judicial custom. Here's how it is presented on Wikipedia:
公衆の敬虔感情、死者に対する敬虔感情
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AD%BB%E4%BD%93%E6%90%8D%E5%A3%8A%E3%83%BB%E9%81%BA%E6%A3%84%E7%BD%AA
And here's a DeepL translation:
Public pious feelings, pious feelings toward the dead
Naturally, Ms. Linh's lawyers complained that this was too vague and not clearly defined. But, conversely, the fact that the criterion is rooted in "public feelings" may have made the supreme court justices that much more inclined to consider the many voices of support for Ms. Linh and the wide-spread public disapproval of her convictions. So, I think this is a case where taking a few minutes to sign a petition really may have made a difference. :)
Japan top court acquits Vietnam trainee of abandoning stillborn twins - The Mainichi
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's top court on Friday acquitted a former Vietnamese trainee of abandoning her stillborn twins, overturning lower court rulings