The long and formal approach progresses along a promenade lined with cherry trees and punctuated by blood-red gates. Rising up on its esplanade at the top of a flight of stairs is the Shinto Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu Temple, dedicated to the god of war, Hachiman. The upper shrine houses the Museum of National Treasures, where you can see religious artefacts and touching portable shrines. This popular site can get overcrowded but you can take a break by strolling around the lotus-filled pools.