The folk museum depicts the life and culture of Hakata Fukuoka. It is located near the Kushida Shrine, Tochoji temple and Canal City Hakata.  Exhibition hall, you can find the many faces and facets of the Hakata way of life,  Machiya hall, is a superb example of traditional architecture and has been moved  here and restored to provide a glimpse into the past.

Hakata Machiya Furusatokan, in Fukuoka-c…の続きを読む

  Ryugu Shrine is located at Nagasaki-bana Cape, the southernmost point of Satsuma peninsula. Nagasaki-bana Cape is said to be the birthplace of the legend of Urashima Taro who saved a turtle, it took him to Ryugu-jo (the Palace of the Dragon as a token of it’s gratitude). Sea turtles come to lay eggs on the beach near this place, and local people love them as the protective god of the sea. The new worship hall of the shrine was built in 2011. The name of popular limited express for sightseeing “Ibusuki-tamate-bako” is associated with the legend of Urashima Taro. Tamate-bako is a box Otohime gave to Urashima Taro. This shrine is becoming popular as a power spot of matchmaking and good fortune in love. There are shells in a big pot. It is said that if you write your wish on a shell and dedicate it, your wish will be granted.

Ryugu Shrine, in Ibusuki…の続きを読む

  This museum exhibits precious materials such as pictures, letters, wills, articles and mementos of the 1,036 Kamikaze pilots based in Chiran who participated in the Battle for Okinawa towards the end of World War 2. It also houses a No.3 type fighter aircraft, Hien.

Chiran Peace Museum for the Kamikaze Pil…の続きを読む

  The main exhibit room displays a few letters and other items of kamikaze pilots who died in battle. One case has photos of about 50 kamikaze pilots from Tachiarai Air Base and includes the following information on each pilot: name, unit, plane used, date of death, and air base of final sortie. The museum does not give any historical summary of the kamikaze operations but rather focuses on the stories of the pilots stationed at Tachiarai Air Base.

Tachiarai Peace Memorial Museum, in Asak…の続きを読む

  Yanagawa Sagemon Festival is one of the most beautiful and very unique Japanese traditional Festival in Kyushu.  The festival is held from February 11 through April 3 in Yanagawa.  Hina dolls are displayed by families with girls to pray for safe growth of  their children, in Yanagawa, in addition to Hina dolls, colourful “Sagemon” are displayed. Sagemon Meguri was started in order to showcase beautiful “Sagemon” to visitors.  Each display of “ Sagemon” represents parents’ wishes for their girls to grow into beautiful, strong, and proud women.

Yanagawa Sagemon Festival…の続きを読む

  Listed on National Scenic Landmark.  Built in 1697 as the villa of the Fourth Lord  Tachibana Akitora.  At that time the region was called Hanabatake (Field of flower),  so the villa was named Ohana or Flower. The garden itself spread out over 3300 square meters and is laid out in such a way as to evoke the image of Matsushima in Sendai. It was extensively renovated in 1908 to 1910.

Ohana and Shotoen Garden, in Yanagawa…の続きを読む

  The aquarium focuses on the aquatic life found around Kyushu. The main tank is a huge, seven meter deep pool filled with all different kinds of marine life including over 120 sharks of 20 different varieties. There are also several outdoor tanks where you can experience feeding dolphins and sea lions.

Marine World Uminonakamichi, in Fukuoka-…の続きを読む

  Yanagawa Canal boat cruise is to board a small boat called the Donkobune and slowly go down the river skillfully maneuvered by a boatman with bamboo pole.  You will enjoy a leisurely cruise along the streets and houses which still retain some remnants of castle town, hearing the boatman’s explanation of the history and landscape of Yanagawa.  You can also enjoy the specialty of Yanagawa eel steamed in basket called “Unagi-no-seiromushi” on the boat.

Yanagawa Canal boat cruise, Fukuoka-pref…の続きを読む

  The festival is held on the first Sunday of March. Kyokusui-no-en is a Japanese traditional ceremony held at Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine on the first Sunday of March, a purification ceremony on a winding stream, is performed by ladies and gentlemen in a ceremonial court robe under the plum blossoms in full-bloom.  After the Tobiume-no-mai dance by shrine maidens, Kyokusui-no-En Festival begins. Vermilion-lacquered cups full of sake are set afloat down the stream. Before the cups reach each of the participants sitting along the stream, they have to make up a Japanese poem called waka, and write it down on a strip of fancy paper. When the cups reach the participants, they drink the sake and hand the paper strip and cup over to an attendant. The ceremony has its origin in a historical fact that Ono-no-Yoshifuru, an elder brother of a noted-calligrapher Ono-no-Tofu, held a ceremony to appease the soul of Michizane Sugawara and to beguile tedious hours in a rural life.

Kyokusui-no-en at Dazaifu Shrine…の続きを読む

  Let’s enjoy harvesting Fruits. In the harvest time, the northern Kyushu boasts many area with beautiful fruit orchards. Fukuoka is one of the leading fruit-producing prefecture in all Japan.  The fruit production in Fukuoka is primarily concentrated in the southern Chikugo region such as Ukiha, Asakura and Tanushimaru. Strawberry : December through May, in Ukiha and Yame Grape : August to beginning of October, in Ukiha and Tanushimaru  Persimmon : Middle of October to beginning of December, in Asakura, Ukiha and Tanushimaru  Apple : August to December, in Asakura and Kama  Kabosu, September to October in Bungo-ono, Oita-prefecture

Fruits harvest experience, in Fukuoka-pr…の続きを読む