Jotenji

This guide to Jotenji in Fukuoka follows the monk Enni Ben'en, who sailed for Song-dynasty China in 1235, trained under a Zen master, and came home in 1241 carrying a teaching license and recipes for udon, soba and manju. A merchant funded this temple as his base, and the guide turns to the plague spreading through Hakata's harbor streets that same year, the city's front door to every idea and illness crossing from the continent. Stand at the gate and picture those crowded, uneasy streets.