Posts

Kirk here with a reminder that, to the best of my knowledge, you only have a couple more months to ride the SL Hitoyoshi before it is retired. Here's an older post about the retirement plans:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid0BoJ2xukz9yqd2oYhrdHbwisnbiU2ugegGeAKjxZyCyunLARtig4HtAKptyW2r1aYl
I was going through some old files of mine yesterday and happened across this little video I made of the steam locomotive. As I recall, I had taken a group of students to Hitoyoshi but, for some reason, it was necessary for me to drive. So, they rode on the SL Hitoyoshi and I did a little video taping. The music is Michel Petrucciani playing "Take the A Train." I think the video and music go quite well together, thanks too Mr. Petrucciani's fabulous playing. If you aren't only familiar with him and like jazz, please check him out on YouTube. Unfortunately, he passed away in 1999 but the world is richer for his having been on this earth, even if only for a short time.

Atsuko here sharing some workshops information being a cool SAMURAI.(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
Special Events to Experience Kumamoto Samurai Culture★
Two special events to experience the culture of Kumamoto Samurai who loved the arts will be held on January 21 (Sat.) ~ 22 (Sun.)!
We have prepared special plans for two Samurai cultural experiences at a special rate!
Please check the AttractiveJapan page for details & application procedures for each plan.
1) Saturday, January 21, 2023 "The Strongest Samurai in Japan! Samurai Experience by Musashi Miyamoto"
https://attractive-j.rezdy.com/537675/details
This is a 50-minute experience to learn authentic Iaido from a teacher who inherited the teachings of Musashi Miyamoto.
In Iaido, you will learn not only about the samurai experience, but also about the spirituality of the samurai.
Registration deadline: Saturday, January 21, right before the experience time!
Special experience fee: 1,000 yen per person (tax included)
---------- --
(2) Sunday, January 22, 2023 "Experience making accessories of Higo Zogan, an art loved by samurai".
https://attractive-j.rezdy.com/537679/details
This is an experience at a long-established shop of Higo Zogan, a representative traditional craft of Kumamoto, established in 1874.
Higo Zogan is a unique design on sword tsubas and small handles, adding a new sense of design to ancient patterns and attracting attention in the fields of fashion and interior design. Learn the history of Higo Zogan, which was loved by warriors, and create your own Higo Zogan accessory!
Application deadline: Friday, January 20
Special fee: 1,000 yen per person (tax included)
Please join us! Join us for this special event!
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=619703180157881&id=100063546132312&sfnsn=mo

Sean here-
Warning -Begin Rant
I am generally one not to complain about my host country. I love being here and feel fortunate to call it my home.
Mount Aso (阿蘇山, Aso-san), is the largest active volcano in Japan and is among the largest in the world.
With the recent opening of the new information center/gift shop and the reopening of the road up to the crater, Aso san is a rare opportunity to experience nature in its rawest form. People from around the world visit Kumamoto and Mt. Aso is one of the biggest attractions in Kyushu.
SO! Why are the signs so poorly translated? (See pics) This is not a mom-and-pop shop and the use of google translate can be forgiven. We are talking about a major tourist destination site where a lot of money is currently being spent to modernize, create trails, and put a shine on our local natural wonder.
There is simply no excuse for how bad and embarrassing these signs are. The money is there and with a little extra effort, the signs which are not complicated can be and should have been translated so the people who the signs are intended for can read and understand the message.
These signs are unacceptable and just end up being posted on social media needlessly reinforcing a trope that Japanese are backwater hicks(田舎者?) and simply laughed off. There is absolutely no excuse, and it is not funny.
So, with this complaint, I offer a solution. Anyone who is reading this knows who is responsible for this incompetency, tell them to give me a call. I'll volunteer some time as I am sure many others would as well to correct this silliness. It is an unnecessary, unacceptable, inexcusable, and embarrassment that needs to be corrected asap.
End Rant
私は普段住まわせてもらっている国に対して文句を言うことはない。文句があるのなら、母国に帰って母国の問題を解決するべきだと私は考える。私は日本に暮らせて幸せであり、日本を我が家と呼べることを幸運に思う。
阿蘇山は日本だけでなく世界で最も大きい活火山の一つである。最近ではギフトショップと火口までの道が再オープンし、自然を身近なものとして体験することができる。世界中の人が熊本を訪れ、阿蘇山は九州の名所の一つでもある。
それなのになぜ標識や看板の翻訳はあれほどひどいのか。小さな店などであればGoogle翻訳を活用した翻訳でも問題ないであろう。しかし、阿蘇山は道の整備や山を魅力的にするために大量の資金が使われている観光名所である。
マネジメント不足なのか、ただの怠慢なのかわからないが言い逃れることはできない。資金はあるため、あと少しの力を入れて、それほど難しくもない翻訳を完璧にするべきである。
私がこのように文句を言う理由は、日本人が海外から世間知らずの田舎者のように思われてしまうからである。阿蘇山にあるような翻訳ミスはSNSなどでネタとして掲載されるのがオチである。言い訳をしてはいけない。
私も口より手を動かすことが大事だと認識している。これを読んでいる皆様の中に、この問題に関係している方を知る方がいれば是非私に連絡して欲しい。大好きな阿蘇山を改善するために、時間を費やしたい。また、このように思ってくれる方も他にいらっしゃると思う。
この問題は不必要な問題であり、許されるべきではない。熊本に在住されている方々にとっても恥ずかしいことでありすぐに改善されるべきである。

Atsuko here. This is a share for those who love Kumamoto.
This is 熊日Kumanichi article about
[Foreigners added to self-government ordinance "citizens" Kumamoto city is the first ordinance-designated city Misunderstanding of "suffrage" spreads] (I attached English translated page)
Kumamoto City has set a one-month public comment period ending January 18. Based on the feedback from the public comments, a draft amendment will be submitted to the regular city council meeting in February, and a schedule will be developed for the amendment to take effect on April 1.
If Kumamoto City says that Kumamoto City is collecting public comments from Kumamoto citizens on this move, then the opinions of foreigners living in Kumamoto City, who are also parties to this, will also be needed, and this is the sharing of information on the public comment solicitation, I think.
It is very difficult to decide what is the best way for everyone and I cannot tell what is best for all. But I think it is a great opportunity to have this opportunity for public comment that respects diverse opinions, where opinions are solicited widely, and where opinions are reflected and diverse opinions are made widely known to the public.
It is my hope that Kumamoto City will be a nice, peaceful, and pleasant place to live for each, various people of all, every kinds.ଘ(੭ˊ꒳​ˋ)੭✧
About public comment (open call for opinions) about "partial revision (draft) of Kumamoto-shi self-government basics regulations"　
https://www.city.kumamoto.jp.e.fm.hp.transer.com/hpkiji/pub/Detail.aspx?c_id=5&id=45930&fbclid=IwAR1w8O-um6nJIgm2SNh6wRKeJz5eiRioIiVCfsXl7kUEb1mY8vtaZFRvGUo
https://kumanichi-com.translate.goog/articles/907811?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en
自治条例「市民」に外国人追加　熊本市が政令市で初　「参政権」との誤解が拡散　｜熊本日日新聞社
　熊本市が、市自治基本条例の「市民」を定義する規定に、外国人を新たに加える方向で条例の改正準備を進めていることが6日、分かった。国際的な観点から「外国人の街づくりへの参加が必要」と判断したためで、4月1日...

William Amakusa City is a nice place to visit, even in winter. Once making the trek down there, scenic walks are aplenty. There is an islet called Kameshima (亀島, pictured) near Wakamiya swimming beach (若宮海水浴場) which is accessible on foot by a sand spit at low tide. There is the must-visit Tomioka (富岡), a stubby peninsula topped by an eponymous (rebuilt) castle which was historically pivotal several times (Japanese Wikipedia entry: https://tinyurl.com/3yzfenfv). There is also the prefecture's only pedestrian lift bridge (hōkaibashi, 昇開橋). Locals who want to cross the narrow strait had had to use the immensely tall, heavily trafficked road bridge (seen in the background) but can safely, calmly, and quickly zip back and forth.
Kumanichi reports that the bridge has broken down and cannot be repaired until a particular part (I think it's called a "widget") is sourced, which is apparently difficult, so resident pedestrians are now forced to cross the tall bridge.
However, photos of the bridge itself seem worth a good daytrip, even in winter. (Pro tip: there's a Joyful at the southern base of the big bridge for breakfast or lunch.) https://kumanichi.com/articles/910588

Carlton. A few days ago here Huy Tran introduced a new pizza place on Shimotori. In the comments someone said they wished there was a place which served Calzone (a kind of folded over and filled pizza), and I found one today.
It’s a new place called Pizzazzip: <https://mrs.living.jp/kumamoto/km_staff_blog/article/4900014> located at Kuhonji Intersection, where Densha-dori and Sangyo-doro cross, also marked by a 4 way overhead crosswalk.
Pizzazzip is easy to see because the storefront is bright yellow.
The young owner/chef used to work in a bakery and I, for one, liked his chewy, doughy fresh crust and simple Calzone filled with maranara sauce and 2 kinds of fresh cheese.
He’s been in business since November.
【New Open・新屋敷】ピザで熊本を盛り上げる！注文から最短3分で提供「pizzazzip」
OPEN／2022年11月16日Pizzazzip（ピザジップ）こんにちは、がまくんです。W...

William If looking for a pleasant adventure walk in Kumamoto, you could do worse than the road behind the castle, Route 303. After crossing a bridge passing over a deep crevice to the northeast of the castle hill (called "Chausuyama," 茶臼山), you'll find a very long ridge with wonderful views of Mt Kimpo and Aso lined with condominiums and small shops. Here and there, steep staircases lead to the valley floor - they're interesting to explore.
About 500M from the castle is the Kumamoto District Court　https://tinyurl.com/yc69dzvx, a beautiful example of German Renaissance architecture. Built in 1908, it was almost torn down in 1975 but was fortunately saved by public outcry. The building is open to the public, as are some trials; attending a trial is an interesting experience (dress appropriately).
Our friend Liz took this stunning photo from the ridge. Bring your camera. (Court photo from Wikipedia.)

William A concern about the new semiconductor plants (a water-intensive industry) slated to open in Kikuchi is water source. Concern is that the plants would deplete Kumamoto City's aquifers. Kumanichi reports on a plan floated to transfer water from Kikuchi:
"The Ryumon Dam is a multi-purpose dam constructed by the national government on the Hasama River in the Kikuchi River system and began operation in April 2002. In addition to flood control, water is supplied for agricultural, industrial and water supply purposes, but currently about 20,000 tons of the industrial water supply capacity of 36,000 tons per day is not being used."
The distance from the dam to the site is a trifling 14K as the crow flies. It's completion could also open up a region currently rather inaccessible.
https://kumanichi.com/articles/903067

Kirk here with more about COVID-19. The image shows that Kumamoto hit a new record of 6,615 new cases yesterday. This image comes from the following Japanese article:
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20230105/k10013941841000.html
For information in English, please see the following Asahi article, which includes a few statements about the situation in Kumamoto:
Japan sets daily record of 498 COVID-19 deaths after holidays
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14808615

Atsuko here with 屋台村 Yataimura report.
The New Year's vacation will soon be over.
Many restaurants are closed on Wednesdays at Yataimura, the food stall village.On weekends and holidays, it was difficult to go there if there are many customers, but I went to today, on Thursday and here is my report.
It was 5:30 p.m. and there were few customers.
We went into a 串カツ Kushi-katsu restaurant.
I wanted to come here because I have a friend who likes shochu and I wanted him to compare shochu drinks.
The shochu comparison was 100 yen per glass, and there were 14 kinds of shochu. I am not good at shochu, but I sometimes drink rice shochu with milk, so I liked the milk-based shochu called "Makiba no Yume". My friend likes potato syochu liqueur, but he said ''Kawabe'' was good.
You cannot bring the 100 yen shochu to each stall. But I recommend it because you can enjoy various Kumamoto's shochu.(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=8294249877315038&id=123734781033296&sfnsn=mo

Kirk here with something for those of you who don't happened to be regular readers of the Taiwan News:
Taipei-Kumamoto direct flight expected in March | Taiwan News | 2023-01-02 18:56:00
TSMC building wafer plant in Japanese prefecture set to start mass production end of 2024 | 2023-01-02 18:56:00

Kirk here. A few weeks ago I posted about Dr. Ichiro Iimura of the Prefectural University of Kumamoto:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid08usMbh9yNWWJkNcKLoF7hEWP6o8atPkpA2heG9rTZVXF1WtFQ7umDc3NGki1cQJBl
It was this news article about the app he and his students built to combine view One Piece statues with learning about the earthquake that prompted me to look into Dr. Iimura's work:
https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/features/travel-spots/20221212-75822/
The app is only available in Japanese but if you'd like to try it out, just search your phone's app store (Play Store?) for "IKOU."

Happy New Year, 2023.Atsuko here.
Sharing heart stone at Kumamoto castle.
The heart stone in Nagasaki is famous, but it seems an artificial stone.I am not sure if this heart stone at Kumamoto Castle is natural or not, but it looks natural because it is not clearly shaped but vaguely heart-like.
Please look for and enjoy it. Something good will surely happen.(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡

William It's said that half the joy of a journey is the journey itself - particularly apt if one goes by train.
A day can be spent traveling to Takamori. A short taxi ride from Takamori Station will take you to the "tunnel to nowhere" - it was planned as a route to central Kyushu, but the more they tunneled, the more prodigious artisanal water became until the engineers finally shrugged, "Let them drive up the damn caldera edge." I was reminded of this by a JT article, "Japan's little trains that could." https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan's-'little-trains-that-could'-battle-for-survival
Thus the tunnel remains, a project half-complete: but, really, rather than automobile exhaust, inhaling the fragrance of some of the purest water in the world is vastly preferable. They've got this cool strobe light effect that makes water droplets falling from the walls appear that they are suspended mid-air. Also, the tunnel has a constant year-round temperature - welcome in the winter (sweater weather!)
The tunnel is often decorated on a seasonal basis. Christmas decorations should last through January.
https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Kumamoto/Takamori-Kumamoto-Japan
https://kumamoto.guide/seasons/illumination/

Kirk here with some end-of-year thoughts:
Thought no. 1: Thanks!
Kumamoto was a pretty friendly venue throughout 2022. Of course, there were some differences of opinion, etc. but no major conflicts that I can recall. Thanks for being so nice, everyone! And, thanks to my partners in crime -- the other editors. I'm pretty sure that I posted more than anyone else this year but when I looked at the top ten posts in terms of reach, I only had a few. Others posted less frequently but with better quality. I'll probably continue to post pretty regularly in 2023 but I'll also be looking forward to more cool contributions from other editors. And, if you'd like to join the team of editors, let me know. The more the merrier!
Thought no. 2: If you are really interested in what is happening in Kumamoto, don't rely on your feed exclusively.
Posts that lots of people are interested in will probably turn up in your feed. But, information that may be useful or important for some readers may not be very popular. COVID-19 information is an example. I was struck this year by just how unpopular (in terms of "reach," at least) COVID-19 posts were. This includes the following recent announcement of an increase in the alert level for Kumamoto Prefecture:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid0aGpSHim84YQ4q8YjNaYzNLKgq62hYgB9H6xJK4d9tR55hCT1nb3qy1sJBa4cDYo1l
If you have a keen interest in such local information, I recommend that you occasionally navigate to the page and make sure you haven't missed anything.
Thought number 3: Happy New Year! Kotoshi mo yoroshiku!!!

Kirk here sharing a post from Huy Tran about where to get good pizza. Thanks Huy! Please add nominations for other good pizza places in a comment to this post. :)
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/8210900395649987

Kirk here with the . . . drum role, please . . . number 1 post of the year in terms of "reach" (people who saw it). It came from William and was about, you guessed it, Russia's war against Ukraine. This post got 51 shares and 6,827 views -- quote a lot for a little page like ours.
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid0zq8bc6LbnRKxN3dg8JZSXqsMAzT5JgnfzPkHNoBbmEmjeYkrWigNFbCCtDj2AYtMl

Kirk here with bad news about COVID-19. In short, the numbers are up and Kumamoto Prefecture has raised its alert level to three. The screenshots are from
https://www.pref.kumamoto.jp/soshiki/30/51409.html
The first one says that 98.9% (!) of normal hospital beds are occupied. The occupancy rate is lower (19.7%) for emergency beds; let's hope that situation doesn't get worse. The second screenshot shows how the infection rate (per 10,000 people) is rising by municipality in Kumamoto. Kumamoto City is currently at the top.
Here's a quote from an e-mail I got from the International Foundation:
--- start quote ---
The Kumamoto Prefecture risk level will be raised to Level3 on an emergency basis as result of a comprehensive assessment based on the infection and healthcare situation in the prefecture and opinions of experts.
Many medical institutions are closed during the year-end and New Year holidays.
Kumamoto City has a special medical system to ensure that citizens can receive medical treatment in the event of a sudden illness.
If you are not sure if you need to see a doctor immediately, please use the medical telephone consultation service.
#7400, #8000
For more information, visit the Kumamoto City website "Holiday on-duty Doctors" page.
Holiday on-duty doctor / Kumamoto-shi homepage:
https://www.city.kumamoto.jp.e.fm.hp.transer.com/hpkiji/pub/detail.aspx?c_id=5&id=102&class_set_id=2&class_id=269&fbclid=IwAR0ED0jr9DRjxxZQCduuoPdctLiBWAPaYuQitN1prvOrgIyTlpobr8pYv28
There are very few medical facilities available however and waiting times are expected to be very long.
To ensure that medical care goes to those who truly need it, we ask that you refrain from making unnecessary and hasty visits to the hospital.
If you suspect a Covid-19 infection, such as fever, consult with the dedicated fever patient telephone line. 0570-096-567(24-hour service)
--- end quote ---
Finally, here's something from a Kumamoto International regular who has gotten COVID-19 recently (slightly edited to protect the identity of the person):
--- start quote ---
I’m now officially afflicted with Covid-19, and so far it’s been like a bad chest cold. I have no other symptoms like pain or fever.
I got a negative antigen test and then a positive serious PCR test. Anyway, I have been urged to go to a hospital for a follow-up check and meds, and I was able to make an appointment for this afternoon.
But that was the 3rd hospital I tried; the situation is getting very difficult with the new year coming on. I was steered to a polyglot language service by the prefecture Covid hotline (096 300 5909) that I turned to today to help me get that appointment.
The English and other languages number is: 092 687 7962. They will call someone for you and stay on the line in a 3 way talk to translate between the main parties. It was quick and very good and I thought you might like to know to maybe post as a resource for others.
--- end quote ---
Stay well!

Atsuko here with information about holiday duty doctor during the year-end and New year holidays. Keep warm and enjoy holidays(๑˃ᴗ˂)و♡
Access denied
I got an error when visiting www.city.kumamoto.jp.e.fm.hp.transer.com/hpkiji/pub/detail.aspx?c_id=5&id=102&class_set_id=2&class_id=269.

Kumamoto-i's self-appointed chief escape room correspondent Fiona here, with an end of year treasure hunt. After the Christmas Quest raised over 15,000 yen for Team Tonakai, Tom Taniguchi has set one final puzzle for Kumamoto residents. Good luck!