If you are planning a trip to the Kyushu region of Japan this guide will get you started with some itinerary suggestions and links to local tourism websites.  Part 1 will cover the sights of Fukuoka, Saga, Kumamoto and Nagasaki Prefectures while Part 2, to be published next week, will take a closer look at Oita, Kagoshima, Miyazaki and Okinawa Prefectures.

Fukuoka Prefecture

Tour the Asahi Beer Factory in in Hakata (Access Map) to see how your favorite beer is made.

If sake is more your style, then visit Hakata Hyakunengura, the only sake brewery in Hakata.

Visit Busoji Temple, the oldest temple in Kyushu, year round or make the trip in June to see the wisteria.

Take a slow cruise of Yanagawa in a rustic donko-bune boat.

Drive the scenic highway to Itoshima Peninsula and take in the view or go surfing.

Visit Dazaifu City, the seat of Kyushu government more than 1600 years ago and home to Dazaifu Tenman-gu Shrine where the deity of learning is enshrined.

Relax in one of the many onsen located near Fukuoka. .

Explore the trading houses (igura-ya) and other historic buildings in Yoshii Town.

Take in one of the exhibits at the Fukuoka Art Museum.

For more itinerary suggestions fro Fukuoka Prefecture visit the Japan National Tourism Organization’s Fukuoka pages, Fukuoka/Hakata Tourist Information or Welcome to Fukuoka.  Also check out Fukuoka Talk, a site that is working hard to compile a list the best places in and around Fukuoka for the local, ex-patriot, or traveler.

Saga Prefecture

Visit Yoshinogari Historical Park to see the largest ditch-surrounded settlement of the Yayoi period in Japan.  Attend a workshop to make Sekkenseki or Kourouseki stone pendants or learn how to make a earthenware flute.

See Yukota Inari-jinja in Kashima City and one of the largest shrines in Japan dedicated to the god of business prosperity.

Explore the natural beauty of Karatsu where you can find the Nanatsugama Caves formed by the rough waves of the Genkai Sea.

Relax at an onsen in Takeo and Ureshino and explore this area that is famous for green tea.

Visit Arita to see ancient kilns be sure to bring home some of the porcelain produced in the area.

Visit the Japan National Tourism Organization’s Saga pages or Saga Sightseeing Information for more great things to do and see in Saga Prefecture.

Kumamoto Prefecture

Visit the active volcano at Mt. Aso and take a cable car to Naka-dake peak, only steps away from the crater’s edge.

See the Last Samurai Battlefield in Tabaruzaka Park.

Visit the onsen of Kurokawa to try outdoor bathing.

Explore scenic Kikuchi Valley where the water temperature is around 13 degrees Celsius even in summer and where a number of waterfalls and crystal clear streams abound.

Take a walking tour of Kumamoto City and stroll around Kumamoto Castle or follow in the footsteps of famous writers or shop to your hearts content.

Browse the Japan National Tourism Organization’s Kumamoto pages or Manyou Kumamoto to plan your trip to Kumamoto Prefecture.

Nagasaki Prefecture

Visit the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum to see the city before and after the bombing in August of 1945.

See the Spectacles Bridge, a picturesque stone arched bridge built in 1634, that gets its name from its resemblance to a pair of spectacles when the arches of the bridges are reflected as ovals on the surface of the Nakajima River.

Explore the striking vermilion Chinese temples along Tera-machi street in Nagasaki.

Relax on the beaches of Iki, a 133 square-kilometer island located in the Sea of Genkai, and try some mugi-shochu, a distilled alcoholic drink made from barley, that was first made here.

Visit Shimabara, the city of fish, where over 1,500 koi can be found swimming in the city’s ponds and wander down an old samurai street.

Have a Sasebo Burger when you explore the city of Sasebo or use the city as a jumping off point for a cruise of the Kujuku Islands.

The Japan National Tourism Organization’s Nagasaki pages, Welcome to Nagasaki and the Nagasaki City Tourism Guide offer more great information for those planning a trip the the area.

Articles in the Japan: A Closer Look series:

• Japan: A Closer Look at Hokkaido
• Japan: A Closer Look at Tohoku – Part 1 & Part 2
• Japan: A Closer Look at Chubu – Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kanto – Part 1 & Part 2
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kanto – Kanagawa
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kanto – Tokyo Practicalities
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kanto – Tokyo – Part 1 & Part 2
• Japan: A Closer Look At Tokyo:Lesser Known Facts And Figures
• Japan: A Closer Look at Kansai – Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3
• Japan: A Closer Look at Chugoku – Part 1 & Part 2
• Japan: A Closer Look at Shikoku

Image Credit: Flickr, Canals in Yanagawa　柳川, Caves, 2006-04-12-14:49.01.jpg & kofukuji nagasaki

So what’s a guy to give his honmei (true sweetheart) on White Day?  Traditionally it was a marshmallow confection, a decidedly unromantic and sticky gift, but today other sweets along with flowers, lingerie and jewelry are popular gifts on White Day in Japan. 

The first White Day happened in 1965 when the third owner of Ishimura Manseido, a confectioner in Fukuoka, came up with the idea of men reciprocating for Valentine’s Day gifts received a month earlier.  Originally the day was called Marshmallow Day but was later changed to White Day (the color of marshmallow) when other confectioners caught on and white chocolate also became a popular gift. 

The holiday may have had its start in Fukuoka, but today retailers across Japan fill their stores with with White Day displays so that the holiday is perpetuated and you can find the perfect gift for your honmei.

If you are in Fukuoka, stop by and visit the  Ishimura Manseido shop and don’t forget to pick up some marshmallows for your sweetheart! 

Image Credit:  Flickr, green tea and azuki bean paste marshmallows