I went to Kumamoto to meet a friend and check out the famous Kumamoto castle.
The castle had took some damage in the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes but the main parts have been renewed and opened to public. Some parts are still undergoing renovation.
The earthquake with a magnitude 7.0 mainshock struck at 01:25 JST on April 16, 2016 (16:25 UTC on April 15) beneath Kumamoto City of Kumamoto Prefecture in Kyushu Region, Japan, at a depth of about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi), and a foreshock earthquake with a magnitude 6.2 at 21:26 JST (12:26 UTC) on April 14, 2016, at a depth of about 11 kilometres (6.8 mi).
In total, the two earthquakes killed 273 people and injured 2,809 others, a majority of them indirectly. Severe damage occurred in Kumamoto and Ōita Prefectures, with numerous structures collapsing and catching fire. More than 44,000 people were evacuated from their homes due to the disaster.