I live in the U.S. and recently learned that my great-grandfather was born in Kumamoto. He was born in 1883 (even before it was "officially" a city) and lived to be 108. Even though he has been gone for decades no one seemed to know where in Japan he was actually born. Cleaning out an old suitcase we found a few photos of him as a younger man (in the 1930s) and some paperwork. I don't read Japanese but managed to have it translated and it stated Kumamoto as his birthplace. Now I can't stop reading and looking at everything about the area. He was a very large influence on my early life. Cheers from America.