The original plan was to take a boat through the Genkai Sea to Karatsu.   However, the waves in the Genkai Sea were rough, so they changed the  plan to head Hakata through Hakata Bay. They stayed in Hakata and took a rest after a long time.

26 Saints Pilgrimage route on January 31…の続きを読む

  The country of Green Tea, Yame.  The Green Tea grown in Yame is one of the highest grade of tea throughout Japan.  This is the large Tea plantation spreading on a gently sloping hilly area, about 70 ha. There is an observatory at the top of hill,  Ariake bay as well as Shimabara Peninsula in Nagasaki-prefecture can be seen on sunny days.

Yame Central Tea Plantation, in Yame…の続きを読む

  The route of this day was from Wajiro to Shikano-shima Island, the distance was 18 km walk.   Started at Wajiro accommodation and walked through Gannosu to Saitozaki. When the tide was low, they walked across to Shikano-shima Island, where the boat port was located. Stayed on the boat.

26 Saints Pilgrimage route on January 30…の続きを読む

  Ibusuki is an Onsen Resort that is famous for its sand baths, where bathers are buried in naturally heated sand. The town encompasses the southern tip of the Satsuma Peninsula, and the main downtown area is along the coast facing Kinko bay.

Ibusuki…の続きを読む

  Aso Shrine is located in Aso, Kumamoto-prefecture. It is popular as a god protecting worshipers from traffic accidents, and exorcism, marriage, and learning. Aso shrine one of the oldest and most prominent shrines in Japan,  and was built in 281 before accession of the 1st Emperor Jinmu. The shrine is located in the center of the caldera of Mt. Aso and the caldera is known as the largest in the world in which people are actually living.

Aso Shrine, in Aso…の続きを読む

  Stands on a hill guarding Hirado Port and the Hirado Strait, which used to be part of an important trade route between Japan and the Asian mainland. The original fortress was built in 1599 by the local Matsura Lord; however, he destroyed the structure after fighting the Tokugawa on the losing side of the Battle of Sekigahara as a gesture of loyalty to the victor. The Matsura Clan continued ruling Hirado for the next two and a half centuries. A new castle, also known as Kameoka Castle was built on the site a hundred years later in 1718 as part of the coastal defences erected during Japan’s self imposed seclusio in the Edo Period. This structure stood for over 150 years, but eventually fell into disrepair and was dismantled during the Meiji Period.

Hirado Castle…の続きを読む

  Kushida Shrine is located in Fukuoka-city, Fukuoka-prefecture. The Shrine of Hakata Gion Yamagasa Festival.  Located in Hakata nearby Canal City Hakata  and was built in 757 as a guardian deity of Hakata. The most exciting summer festival in Kyushu,  Hakata Gion Yamakasa is held in the shrine in July.  The tall Kazari Yamakasa, a luxuriously  decorated float, is always displayed.  The float was constructed without using even a single nail. The Oi Yamakasa, in which floats weighing over a ton race through the streets of Hakata carried on the shoulders of 26 people, presents a dynamic spectacle of bravery and strength that attracts many spectators. The shrine is also famous as place of Setsubun ceremony ( Bean throwing  ceremony) which is held on February 3rd every year.  

Kushida Shrine, in Fukuoka-cty…の続きを読む

  Usa Shrine is located in Usa, Oita-prefecture. One of the most beautiful Shrine in Japan, the head shrine of Hachiman Shrine that is  composed 44,000 shrines that dedicated to the Hachiman Deity. Emperor Ojin, who was deified as Hachiman-jin  (the tutelary god of warriors), is said to be enshrined in all the sites dedicated to him; and the first and earliest of these was at Usa in the early 8th century. The Shrine is was founded in 727

Usa Shrine, in Usa…の続きを読む

  Yutoku Inari Shrine is located in Kashima, Saga-prefecture. One of the most famous Inari shrines in Japan. Dedicated to Inari, the deity whose messengers are foxes, it is the third largest of its kind in Japan. It was constructed in 1688 as the family shrine of the Nabeshima clan who ruled what would become the Saga area during the Edo period. 

Yutoku Inari Shrine, in Kashima…の続きを読む

  Kora Taisha Shrine is located in Kurume, Fukuoka-prefecture and stand at the middle of Kora Mountain.  The largest Shrine in Kyushu. The shrine is specified as Ichino-miya or the representative Shrine in Chikugo region.  The Shrine was built in 1661 and has been designated as important Cultural Property in Japan.   From the Shrine compound, breath taking magnificent view of Chikugo plain can be seen.

Kora Taisha Shrine, in Kurume…の続きを読む