Go on a Trip to Kumamoto

Last week, I went on a business trip to Kumamoto. It's important to see for yourself the current situation in various cities in Japan.

It takes about 2 hours from Haneda to Kumamoto. From the plane bound for , I could see Mt. Fuji with snow makeup. It's hard to see Mt. Fuji from the sky, so I feel like I've gained a little. The crater looks like this. If you take it a little slower, it will take 2 hours in no time. It seems that Kumamoto Airport will be reopened in 2023, two years later, and the current domestic terminal is a temporary and simple feeling. Kumamon also has a modest appeal. It seems to be a pretty good terminal, so I'm looking forward to it in two years.

This time, Sakuramachi, a commercial facility called Kumamoto, was near the hotel where I stayed. The bus terminal is also included, so buses departing from the airport also stop here.

This "Sakuramachi Kumamoto" is located on the site of the Kumamoto Transportation Center in Kumamoto City, but it is a huge facility with theaters, commercial facilities, cinema complexes, hotels, houses, etc., centered on the redevelopment of Japan's largest bus terminal. It seems that it was a project.

After a little research, Kyushu Sanko took the lead in designing the facility, and Nikken Sekkei started dismantling the existing facility in 2015, and the opening was completed in 2019 and four years. The plan was revised due to the impact of the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake, and the total construction cost was 75.5 billion yen, which is a big project.

There are Ron Herman and Maison Kaiser Cafe on the 1st floor, so it can be said that it is a fashionable facility in Kumamoto.

Kumamoto ramen for lunch right after arriving in Kumamoto. Unlike Hakata's tonkotsu ramen, the noodles are medium-thick noodles.

Another feature is that the soup is lighter than Hakata's tonkotsu ramen. Both are delicious.

After all, since you came to Kumamoto, you want to see Mt. Aso. I was worried if I could go because there was news that an eruption had occurred recently, but I was able to go to the Kusasenri Observatory on the way. I think it's fairly far from the crater, but it's quite powerful. You can feel that it is a volcano because the eruption smoke (white smoke) is still coming out.

The great thing about this observatory is that there are no partitions, and you can walk anywhere in the prairie. The horses are grazing, so I usually walk there. Isn't it hard to find a spot where you can see a horse walking in a natural state at such a distance?

After seeing a beautiful horse, I went to the yakiniku restaurant "Ginryu" where you can eat delicious horse sashimi at night. It is just a short walk from Tsuruya Department Store. I ordered the finest horse sashimi because it was a big deal, but it's amazing. It's really delicious. Mr. Ma, I'm sorry. And the level of Japanese beef is also extremely high. I don't see any words other than delicious, isn't it? I want to eat every week.

Introducing another Kumamoto gourmet. Locally popular Japanese izakaya "Seven Lucky Gods". You can enjoy local cuisine and local sake made from Kumamoto ingredients.

Do you know a local chicken called Amakusa Daiou? I knew it for the first time when I came to Kumamoto. The beating of Amakusa the Great. The skin is roasted in a nice way, and the more you chew it, the more delicious it becomes. It was already the best if I poured this in Kumamoto's local sake Junmai Ginjo (Japanese sake) "Taito".

In addition to this, it is a recommended izakaya that both drinkers and non-drinkers can enjoy, such as freshly fried mustard lotus root and local octopus dishes.

I also saw Kumamoto Castle because I had time on the last day. As expected, it is one of the representative castles in Japan. The scale is amazing.

I couldn't tell from a distance, but when I looked at it up close, the effects of the Kumamoto earthquake were everywhere. The stone wall that supports the castle? Has collapsed considerably, and there is a part that is about to collapse. Not only the castle, but everywhere was damaged and the magnitude of the earthquake was known. It's hard to understand the actual situation until you come to this kind of thing. It will take about 20 years to repair the whole thing.

When I go to a rural area, I try to see a local supermarket, but in Kumamoto, the fish are so fresh and cheap. In Tokyo, sashimi of about 600-700 yen was sold for 200 yen or 300 yen. There are many kinds of meat and abundant kinds of hormones. I envy the cheap and delicious fish.

When I come to Kumamoto next time, I would like to stretch my legs a little and go to Kurokawa Onsen or Amakusa. It's a good place, Kumamoto.