Yatsushiro, Kumamoto

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Map showing location of Yatsushiro in Kumamoto Prefecture (as of 2006).

Yatsushiro (八代市; -shi) is a city located in Kumamoto, Japan.

On August 1, 2005, the city merged with the municipalities of Izumi, Kagami, Sakamoto, Sencho and Toyo into a new expanded city of Yashushiro. As of this merger but with 2003 population estimates, the city has an estimated population of 139,170 and a density of 205 persons per km². The total area is 680.10 km². Yatsushiro is known for its Myokensai festival on November 23 of each year, which includes a parade of horses through the streets of the city. Horses and participants share sake from a large barrel. The horsemeat is later chargrilled and served at a celebratory dinner on the banks of the Kumagawa River. Also, each fall Yatsushiro hosts one of Japan's largest fireworks displays. This fire works last for about 7 hours and 15 minutes. The visitors come from everywhere in Japan to take turns igniting firework-shaped squid-on-a-stick.

The city's landmarks include the ruins of Yatsushiro Castle (now part of a shinto shrine) and the often overlooked port area that offers magnificent views of the local paper factories and the nearby Amakusa islands with their strange "Small Bald Man Standing On One Leg" formation. Several unmarked graves can also be found in Yatsushiro, a natural byproduct of its legacy of Christian oppression. The most recent of these killings occurred in 2004; several members of the community were implicated but not convicted in the attacks.

The central neighborhoods of Yatsushiro have been beset in recent years by repeated floods from local rice fields, resulting in an epic infestation of frogs.

Yatsushiro is known throughout southern Japan for being a mecca for English instruction. Its large international community includes significant enclaves of Belgian, Thai, and Bhutanese students who attend several boutique language schools scattered around the city. Former Assistant Language Teachers hired by the Japanese government developed the new "Ruido Scream" method of language learning, whereby students are encouraged to practice grammar and conversation by aggressively engaging other class members in full-volume confrontations. A number of European and South Asian restaurants, markets, and video stores cater to this burgeoning community of language students. Yatsushiro's public high school students were recognized in 2005 for having the country's highest level of English fluency. The city is often referred to as the "Glasgow of the Orient."

Places of particular interest around the city include retro-themed Saty Department Store (now closed), Daiichi Movie Theater (now closed), a shopping arcade with a variety of stores selling traditional Japanese goods (most now closed), and Analog, southern Kumamoto's only dance club (also now closed).