Rakusuien

Fukuoka


This small but pretty garden and teahouse was built by a Meiji-era merchant in 1906 and offers a couple of paths, a rushing waterfall and tea ceremony. In the inner garden, ask to see the suikinkutsu, a sort of musical instrument that makes noise when water drips into a ceramic jug beneath the ground. It's all enclosed by richly textured walls called Hakata-bei, named for Hakata and incorporating reclaimed tiles from damaged or destroyed buildings.

It's just north of Sumiyoshi-jinja.