Esther did it Again, part 1

Sooooo many times we have driven out of Fukuoka City,

heading east, west, south....

(see last picture in this post).

And ALWAYS wondered what those hills near Kurume City were 

we could see in the distance, ...

Somehow they were never on our stop-list.

But finally Esther got the honor to take us there!

In the hills (Mt Koura) just next to Kurume City sits this temple.
Koura Taisya Shrine.

Over the years we have seen "a few"....

 ...and still it's always nice to spend some moments near a temple.

This one is definitely a "returner".

The front-gate from the inside...great view out there.

Kurume City down below and in the far distance, a bit to the left: Mt Sefuri...

BTW, Mt Sefuri we can also see from the cockpit of Alishan,
 from the other side of course and....if the weather is clear. 

As at most temples, you can post a "wish".

Those on the Left are personal and hand-written,

those on the Right...are lucky draws...

The road was mostly on the ridge of this mountain range, 
with great views left and right.

Here once more facing N.

Ahhh, the Lady with the Nikon beat me to it...

Not a road to meet too many cars from the opposite direction.....

We offered this fellow a ride, but he said that his pick-up would come "soon".

After the hills near Kurume we drove further east.

Marijke wanted to see

the big river that marks Hita Town.

Always good for spotting birds and....

 Fish

This time of the year the AYU swims around.

Indeed tasty river fish.

Here a river-side eatery with an AYU fish trap set-up.

Just watch the fish swim into the trap!
Not a bad job...

Arrow top-left: Alishan.

The arrow in the middle is Mt Koura & mountain range we drove.

And at the arrow right-bottom: Hita town.

That was another great spin with Esther.

Salute