The first stop on your itinerary is a visit to Dazaifu Temman-gu. The shrine is housed in extensive grounds covering an area of 3,000 acres. The tranquil garden is planted with 6,000 plum trees and the shrine itself is built on the grave of Sugawara no Michizane, venerated throughout Japan as Tenjin, the Shinto kami of scholarship. Michizane is celebrated as a man pure in heart and deed, and after his death he was deified and worshipped as a god. Next it's on to the Kyushu National Museum, which has attracted more than 15 million visitors since it opened in 2005 to great acclaim. Housed in a dramatic building with a spectacular floating cobalt roof, it's one of only three National Institutes in Japan; the others are in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Nara. At the museum, you can see the long history of Japan in the aspects of art, religious iconography, and porcelains.