Today in “The World Of Tea” IIW we were fortunate enough to have a guest speaker from a tea shop called “The Path Of Tea”. Thia McKann the representative who spoke to us happened to be a certified Tea master and there are only fourteen in the country. She talked about four different types of tea which are White, Green, Oolong, and Black produced in different ways. What was interesting about how the tea is made is that the processes derive from each other with White tea as the purest form while Black is the most “Artificial” being the most processed out of all of them. However when it came to the topic of conventional tea against organic the conventional tea is a non-beneficial drink losing it’s properties being produced for manufacturer reasons. A fact about the factory made tea is that farmers mass producing the tea spray (Twenty times) many chemicals on their plants which have enough “Poison” to kill a Tiger. Though the organic had many healthy benefits such as fighting cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, and even the nervous system depending on the form of tea you drank. This herbal drink with a long history actually began it’s circulation west from it’s origin in China thanks to the “Silk Road” where it prospered in growth within many other countries. Another interesting tid-bit about tea is that it takes the flavour of the substance it resides near by which creates a whole new world for the drink to grow, and still now many flavours and techniques are still being made today.
Phung Tran, January 5, 2011 Word Count-298 Today I really like the presentation about tea coming from the only person in Houston who is a certified tea master. During the tea tasting the best tea was the white tea. It wasn't as strong as the other teas and was easier to drink. The green tea with strawberries in them was my least favorite. It was hard to drink but it smelled really nice. My favorite type of tea would have to teas that have barely any flavor. When drinking this type of tea I feel more relaxed then drinking others. I learned that tea has many health benefits including stress relief, fighting germs, or even skin care. The best teas are from Japan and China. In Japan they usually serve you treats with your tea and only give you a little bit of tea so you would stay longer. If you drink 3-5 cups of black tea in a day, your chance of dying from a stroke is lowered 44%. Also, the type of water you use also affects the taste of the tea. Tap water will make the tea taste really bad. I am learning about the tea from Africa and researching Cameroon. The first bushes that were grown there was planted in 1914 at Tole on the fertile slopes of Mount Cameroon. The production of the tea there was discontinued in 1948 and did not start again until 1952. Some of the drinks that they drink there are Ndu and Tole. Ndu and Tole tea is recommended to be in the morning or afternoon but Tole tea can be drunk in any hour of the day. Both teas are also recommended to be drunk with milk in them, but if you do it takes out all the health benefits out of the tea.
Day one-1/4/11- After returning from Winter Break, I attended The World of Tea IIW. To start things off with a blast the only certified Teamaster in Texas visited us to give a lecture on White, Black, Green, Rooipos, and Oolong Tea, while allowing us to drink the tea as she spoke. The first thing I learned was that different types of tea are basically the same ingredients, except that the process of making the tea determines the type of tea. For example: white tea is made when you pick the top two leaves and dry them in a bamboo tray, while green tea is made when you steam the leaves, instead of drying them out. Another thing I learned was that tea is very good medicinally. White tea is good for preventing strep, green tea is good against cancer, oolong tea is good for preventing depression and creating t-cells, black tea is good for your cardiovascular system, and rooipos tea is good for the digestive system. However, as good as tea can be for you, drinking black tea with kidney stones can be dangerous and drinking tea with milk completely negates all the medicinal effects from tea. When she finished her lecture about tea, I had the opportunity to ask her a question. I asked how people are able to implement flavours in teas, since the tea we tasted had a hint of flavour in it. Interestingly enough, she replied that the flavour is created if you brew that particular item with it. So if you wanted a peach flavoured tea, you would brew the peach with the tea leaves; a lot like the distilling process in making perfume.
In Today’s session in “The World Of Tea” IIW we had a more work oriented period of time where all the groups focused on producing the different “Tea Maps” for each of the continents in the world. The group I’m in specializes in teas from Africa which ended up being very interesting because almost all the different types of tea except Rooibus (found in South Africa) where accumulated from foreign settlers (European) bringing in various tea plants to grow as a cash crop mainly during the mid 1800’s - 1950’s. Though from looking at the vast regions within Africa I came to the conclusion that besides Rooibus Tea that the people sell a lot of black tea due to the tastes of the people liking their tea strong and quite bitter. Another interesting tid-bit I learned was that Kenya is the country in Africa that’s one of the world’s largest tea exporters selling quite a bit of crops across the world. However besides doing more research our group was fortunate to experience and observe a rendition of what would be a “Japanese Tea Ceremony”. This type of formal gathering consist of four different principles which are Wa, Kei, Sei, Jaku (In english in respective order it means harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility). Which give the radiance to the whole aspect of drinking tea with others while being treated equally regardless of your social stature. The women of Japanese culture who portrayed the ceremony told us, an interesting tid-bit that tea ceremonies were started during war periods of the Samurai to have a period of relaxation while clearing the mind of outside thoughts. Overall it was a very interesting day, and I can’t wait to see what tomorrow has in store for us.
Day two- 1/5/11- In today’s schedule for The World of Tea IIW we were going to have the chance to see a traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony take place. Though before we were going to do that we had the opportunity to be able to research about tea in our respective continents. In Africa I learned that there is actually a fairly big divide in tea within the continent. Apparently rooipus and black tea is drunk more in the southern parts of Africa, while in northern Africa they drink more green tea. I came to this conclusion as each of our group members picked their two countries/cities within Africa. Evidently each southern country/city only drank black or rooipus, and the northern parts only drank green tea. Just by looking at this information I got the thought that this can be one of the reasons why the cultural diversity between different countries of the same continent can be so great. After learning these interesting tidbits, it was time to attend the Japanese Tea Ceremony. From my perspective it was quite interesting to watch. It was quiet, respectful, and calming. The sweet that they gave us had a powdery feeling to it, but it had an interesting watermelon flavour to it. They also served us the traditional tea: green tea. It smelled almost exactly like grass. When I tasted it, it had a bitterness to it, but overall it wasn’t that bad of a tea to drink. Though the Though it was the feeling of equality that made me like it.Since it takes place in a small room they have to crawl through a small door. That door represents that all social classes are nullified and everyone is equal. If everyone had this tradition, maybe peace won’t be as hard to achieve. -Greggory Miller Word Count: 299
Learning about the Japanese Tea ceremony was an interesting treat for today. We got to learn, not only about the tea ceremony, we also got to learn about some Japanese culture. We learned that it takes years for someone to put on their kimono correctly and it takes a professional only 10-15 minutes. Different kimonos are also worn for each season. They were worn all the time a long time ago but now are only worn on special occasions. More formal kimonos have very little print on them. The place where the tea ceremony takes place is a small room and is performed on Tatami mats. People go through a door that was small. The door was meant to represent that everyone at the tea ceremony is equal, class did not matter. During the tea ceremony , the host takes out a small piece of cloth and wipes the tea cup even though this action might seem useless, it means that the host wants to show the guest that everything is clean. When I tasted the tea that was prepared it tasted bitter and the treat that was served also tasted really sweet. The sweetness from the tea balances out the bitterness from the tea. Today I started my research on Cameroon, a country in Africa. German planters were experimenting with growing tea bushes between 1884-1914. The first bushes were planted in 1914 at Tole on the fertile slopes of Mount Cameroon. I hope tomorrow will be a productive day.
Today in the third day of “The World of Tea” IIW we’ve once again primarily focused on our own specialized tea continents researching facts while just learning about the herbal drink itself in general. Today however I learned more about the infamous Rooibos Tea from South Africa which is pretty popular among the countries around it as well as the world itself. Rooibus the tea plant is not only used to make a tea but also as enhancers in food, and in medical properties for people depending on which part of South Africa you are residing within. Also this morning I had the pleasure of trying a white peach tea courtesy of Ms. Martin. The interesting thing I’ve started to infer about Tea in general is the fact taste plays very little in the drink itself but rather makes the drinker feel good while benefiting their health. Though it’s just a pleasure to be able to take in a pure substance and feel one with nature when the drink is consumed. Although another thing today that our IIW group was lucky to experience was the “Korean Tea Ceremony”. Unlike the Japanese Tea Ceremony the Korean one allows for a more casual experience made for a social get together rather than a formal gathering. The tea itself was green tea because from what I’ve learned today many east asian countries thrive on this type of tea. Though the tea in this ceremony was very weak compared to other teas, but still just as refreshing if not more. Overall the connection I’ve noticed in each ceremony drinking tea was for the main purpose of relaxation to also obtain unity with those you’re drinking with. In the end today was a good experience, and I’m anxious for what’s coming next tomorrow.
Yesterday we learned about the Japanese tea ceremony and now today we learned about the Korean ceremony. Unlike the Japanese tea ceremony, which is about meditation and you do not talk, the Korean ceremony is mostly about building your relationship with your neighbors. Many conversations go on during the ceremony. Another difference in the two ceremonies is the fact that the Japanese use green tea powder instead of green tea leaves. Although, the similarity between the two ceremonies is that both ceremonies have sweets served before drinking the tea. Also, the green tea powder can be used in different foods. Young tea leaves are not harmful, but have special effects when eaten. At first green tea was used in food and medicine, but with the development of storage technology, it has became a material for drink. The tea ceremony in Korea was not as traditional as the Japanese tea ceremony. The Korean ceremony helped gathered upper-class women and build their relationships with each other. The tea that was served today was way less bitter than the one at the Japanese tea ceremony since the Korean care more about the taste more where as in Japan, they care about the color of the tea. While researching about my country, Cameroon in Africa, I learned that the 3 factories within Cameroon each produce 3 different type of tea. Tole’s low-grown teas, Ndu’s high-grown tea, and Djuttitsa’s clonal teas are all of excellent quality. I look forward to what tomorrow brings.
Day three- 1/6/11- Today in The World of Tea IIW, we had a Korean Tea ceremony planned, however, it wouldn’t happen until later in the day, giving us the opportunity to research more on our continents. Having Africa, I found a few more facts that were somewhat interesting. The first, was that next to water, tea is the second most drunk beverage in the world. It was really surprising since you would think it would be a soft drink or even coffee. Another fact I learned is that in Africa there is a certain type of green tea called attaya.. Though it takes a long time to brew, making restaurants unable to sell them, instead, attaya is brewed for more social occasions. Whether with friends or family they would make the tea and pass it on to each other, each brew having a different taste than the other. Tea is a really big part of social-like gatherings. Also, speaking of social gatherings, the Korean Tea ceremony we attended was very interesting and completely different than the Japanese Tea ceremony. Rather than being very quiet and relaxing, the Korean Ceremony was mostly a social gathering to talk and chat with friends and family. It is also performed more often than the Japanese, since their ceremonies were mostly for special occasions. Another difference was the tea. Koreans have a process of drinking tea in which they use each of their senses to drink it. Along with a different method of drinking, their tea differs in taste, as it isn’t as bitter as Japanese green tea since they focus more on taste and appearance of the tea. Overall, comparing the two seemed very interesting and I wish that I had this cultural background for it seems very nice to do. -Greggory Miller Word Count:294
Joanna M. 1-4-11 Today during IIW a lady that is the only certified tea master in Texas, came to talk to the class about tea and about some of its benefits. The lady brought with her 5 different types of tea that we could drink; white peach tea, green tea, oolong tea, black tea, and rooibos tea. The teas she brought turned out, are actually really good for us. I learned that if you drink 3 to 4 cups of tea (I don't remember what kind)it helps you with many health issues. Since the lady was talking way too fast for me to write all the information down, so I only got to write down the process for how to prepare white tea. The process is: You pick up two leaves and put them in bamboo plates and then leave them there to dry. The five teas that the lady brought with her, tasted really good. After tasting the different teas I just wanted to have more, the flavors that were added to the teas made the teas taste way better then before. So far being in this IIW has not been a bad choice and I'm glad I chose it. I hope to learn more during this week in this IIW
Day 1: 1/4/11 We had a guest speaker come to westchester today for our IIW for tea. Thia McKann from the tea shop The Path of Tea. Sheis the only tea expert in Texas. She served us 5 differnt types of tea Green, White, Black, Oolong and Red Bush tea. She started telling us how tea originated from China. When tea started to get known only a few people had access to it in the world only once a year. From China it passed down to Japan to Korea and so on. The one thats the most popular in East Asia is Green tea. Its the best tea for reducing stress. It great for the heart, and helps with any type of cancer. But you have to drink 3 to 5 cups a day for health benefits. Most people dont know how to get the benefits of tea. It has a little trick to it you see. If you put milk in general in your tea cup it just zaps the good stuff of the tea out there is no use to drink cys you took everything that you need away. Also when you make your tea you dont want your water to be too hot or again all the good stuff will be gone. The trick is not to have your water too hot nor to cold. Its best for your water to be very purified. Dont use Ozarka or Tap Water to acidic. You also want to use organic tea. Most of the tea bags we have these days have a very strong chemical so they can release the tea quicker when its droped into the tea cup. Some teas have so much of that chemical that it can kill a tiger! Yet people buy that stuff. Sandra Jaros Word Count:296
Joanna M. 1-5-11 word count: 455 Today in my IIW we had the privilege to have a group of Japanese ladies come and perform a cultural Japanese Tea Ceremony for us. As we walked in the room we noticed that the ladies were wearing what is called a kimono, the kimono's had many pretty flower designs. Apart from the kimono, one of the ladies was wearing a Yukata, which is a summer kimono. In the room there was this mat thing that is called a “tatami mat”, the mat is where the guests sit. Unfortunately there wasn't room for everyone in the mat, so only three people could volunteer to take part of the ceremony meanwhile the rest of us sat outside the mat. As the ceremony started we all watched all the steps that were taken to perform the ceremony. The first thing is that when a person enters the door, they must put a fan in front of them and bow at the entrance. Once already bowed, they slowly scooted themselves in until they reached at the space where they need to sit. When the host enters; everyone must bow (even the host), the host enters and starts preparing the tea. As the host is preparing the tea, a helper comes inside and hands over a platter of sweets to drink with the tea. The helper bows down in front of the first guest, which is the guest of honor, and the guests also bow down. After bowing down the guests is allowed to get a sweet, but before he/she says something in Japanese that means “sorry for having a sweet before you”. After the guests gets the sweet they pass the tray and the same process keeps going on until the last guest gets a sweet. By that time the host has finished preparing the tea and starts serving it, the same process is done with the tea that was done with the sweet. As the host serves the tea, he/she turns the cup clockwise twice and then sets it down, the guest then turn it counter clockwise and picks up the cup, he/she drinks a sip then turn it clockwise and clean where your lips touch, then put the cup down. When the ceremony is over, everyone bows again and then they leave. During the ceremony everyone is very silent since during the ceremony is a chance to meditate and everyone to accept them and be equal. There are four objectives to the Japanese tea ceremony which are: Harmony, Respect, Purity and Tranquility. I have to admit that having the chance to experience a Japanese tea ceremony was a very good experience and it was quite enjoyable to learn from this experience.
Day 2: 1/5/11 It was Japanes ceremony. Everybody has seen them in mangas and animes. Everybody thinks oh this is so cool!!!! I wish I get to do that someday in my life. Well yeah its really cool to participate and do one of those, but really its hard work. I thought completly wrong about it. The room is very small and the entrance is very narrow. u have to bend on your knees and scoot yourself inwards. As soon as your inside the tea room u need to be completly quiet u need to show alot of respect. You walk down along to the end of the room. So on and so on until the last person is seated.You bow before you enter the room and when your inside. Also before you sit down you bow. The host enters the room through another door with all the untesils. Places them down and starts brewing the coffee. When done its placed in a big bowl. Its turned clockwise 2 times placed down and bow. The guest drinks it cleans the place were their lips touched. You turn the bowl clockwise again serve it to the next person beside you and bow. Son and so on until the last person is done. The tea that they serve is a very strong and bitter taste. Its Green tea very thick. Its like the mushroom creme soup thinckness. Its powdery. They give you a tiny little coockie the size is like a quarter. Very sweet. It helps alot when you drink the tea. You must slurp you tea to show how much you like the tea. The host gets up picks up all the cups utensils etc. The host comes back everybody bows and leaves the room. The whole time you are silent. The reason how the whole tea thing in peoples houses started was because of the war era. The room is very small because its a sign of equality. The moment people come in the tea room everyone is equal. Tea rooms were created so you would forget about everything that was bad outside. The hsound of tea realxed people. The women wear kimonos as a sign of respect and tradition. till this very day tea ceremonie are still heald and still important but not practiced as usual as in the early days. Sandra Jaros Word Count:389
Day 3: 1/6/11 After my experience witht the japanese ceremony i was just impresed how does people like that type of tea. i drank it once in my life and that will be the last one xD. Today we had the Korean ceremony. I personally believe to like the Korean one better. Some women decide to wear their tradional clothes. Not forcely only if they want to. You get to talk as much as you like in the ceremony. The room isnt small its big so you can invite as many people as you want to socialize with. The tea is yummier. You still have respect and all of that but you just have for fun. Also you can do the tea ceremony whenever you want for who ever you want. The sweets that they serve you are rice cakes. Over there the presentation of food is more important than the taste of it. So most of the sweets taste plain and they are all the same. Also the second type of "sweet" that they serve is spicy little snacks. I tend to prefer to have the Korean Tea Ceremony. Because its in my type of enviroment. I am defently not the type of person that can stay still forever and not talk. I feel so blagh. i believe everyone should have happiness!!!! =D and that is the Korean Tea Ceremony =D Sandra Jaros Word Count:229
Joanna M. 1-6-11 word count:263 Today it turns out that we are having a tea ceremony from the perspective of the Korean culture, it was quite wonderful. A tea ceremony from Korea is actually quite different than the Japanese ceremony, in some things. In the Japanese ceremony; everyone is so silent and just meditate with the help of tea, while in the Korean ceremony; the tea is an excuse for people to gather and socialize. What I liked about the Korean ceremony was that; when preparing the tea they actually focus more on the color, aroma and taste of the tea rather than just the color (like the Japanese do). The Koreans seem to also like green tea just like the Japanese do, but the Koreans prepare their tea with loose leaves and not powder tea. The Korean green tea seems to have a nice enjoyable aroma and a nice simple taste. During the Korean ceremony they also serve sweets with tea, the sweets more commonly served are rice cake and some other Korean delights. I was really looking forward to eating Korean delights, but since not most people would enjoy them we just ate normal chocolate sweets. In Korea it turns out that the ladies instead of wearing kimon's (like the japanese do) they wear what is called a “hanbok”. Between the Japanese and Korean ceremonies, I liked the Korean best. The reason is because it helps us to find a better way to socialize with our friends and family and I personally think that the Korean culture is just AWESOME!!! ^^ kamshabnida~
Joanna M. 1-7-11 word count:334 Today we had the privilage to have an old staff member from our school, visiting us and explaining to us her heritage on tea from where she comes from. It was quite interesting to know that before they had tea, they used to be a coffe country, but as tea was introduced to Iran, it became more popular and now they drink it all the time. Tea was succesfully cultivated in the north part of the country (Gilan and Mazandoran) in the year 1899. Also in 1934, was when the first modern tea factory was created. Now in Iran they have over 100 factories which produce over fifty thousand tons of tea, and it still isnt enough since they still have to impprt more tea from other countries. It's quite interesting that over in Iran they traditionally drink black tea, which in my opinion was quite bitter >.<, with a a sugar cube and no they don't put it in the tea but in their mouths. I tried it but I have to say thati failed at it :(. The black tea that was served to us had a redish color and it was quite bitter, that even with the sugar cube I could still taste the bitterness and i didn't like it. It turns out that tea is called "chaai" so everytime someone says to drink your chaai it means to drink your tea, which in Iran is heard a lot. In Iran people drink tea at anytime of the day; when they wake up, before a meal, during free time etc. It was quite interesting to know that in Iran they use little glass cups instead of porcelain cups like most countries do. The reason is kind of because they like to watch the color of tea as they drink it. It was quite interesting what I learned but I have to admit that i really didn't like the tea, it was just TOO BITTER, so for me it tasted quite yucky.>_<
Today we had a speaker from Iran. They are lovers of tea. They have more than 100 factories making tea and have 50,000 teas of tea per year. Over there you wake up first thing they give you is tea, beofre lunch you have tea, after lunch they give you tes, before dinner you get tea and before you go to bed you have tea. At the end of the day you basicly had 5 cups of tea which means you get the health benefit of it as i said earlier above. Their tea is differnt. Its strong but not bitter. Its basicly Black tea that they drink which is the traditional tea that they have been drinking before Jesus was even born! Iran is BEARLY getting green tea. Its starting to get a little bit more popular but its very hard to consume over there. The way how they drink their tea is very how can i say differnt from everything else I have seen so far. They serve the tea and stuff, but before you drink it you must put a very hard sugar ice cube in you mouth. THE WHOLE THING!!! >=O then you drink your tea until its completly done. The snacks that they serve you is basicly fruit. When ever you anter a house of somebody they bring you tea and snacks inmediatly without asking. If there is something that you dont like you dont say that you dont like it you just dont touch it you leave it there. Some of the differences between the other countries that drink tea is that in Iran they dont have tea ceremonies. To them tea is like coke for us. They dont technically have to be dreesed in their traditional clothing. They dont drink it in a tea room. Its just a very nice thing for them to drink and to have. They dont pour the tea in a tiny porcelain cup they serve it in a tall transparent cup glass the people over there tend to love looking at the color of the tea. I also had the chance to taste Darjeeling tea the original way. I didnt want to do what most of the people did. They would get the tea and put all this water in there and diped cookis and dumped 5 blocks of sugar cubes in the cup. NO! What I decided to do is to get my cup to get full all the way to the top. No water added and one ice cube. I placed the cube slowly into my mouth. I thought i was beeing CRAZY!!!! i was about to put in my mouth one of the strongest black tea that there is in the world. I was afraid I was gonna spit the whole drink out and emberrace mysef. But i just decided to get over with it. It was a very hot dark tasting. Very strong it tasted like black coffee only without the coffee taste you know what mean xD The whole sugar cube melted in the first sip that I had of that tea. Thats how hot it was. I was chiking on all that sugar stuck in my throught. So i had to drink the rest of the it. I am actually proud and happy that i got the chance of to drink the most expensive tea on earth. which is the Darjeelian tea. I dont understand why people were messing the tea. I mean its the only time in my life im going to have the chance to drink something so expensive. I just decide to drink it the original way so i can expirience the real original tasting. Till now I am very satisfied with what I have done and learned this whole entire week. I am looking forward to monday for the Serentea fieldtrip. Sandra Jaros Word Count:643
Today we had a speaker from Iran. They are lovers of tea. They have more than 100 factories making tea and have 50,000 teas of tea per year. Over there you wake up first thing they give you is tea, beofre lunch you have tea, after lunch they give you tes, before dinner you get tea and before you go to bed you have tea. At the end of the day you basicly had 5 cups of tea which means you get the health benefit of it as i said earlier above. Their tea is differnt. Its strong but not bitter. Its basicly Black tea that they drink which is the traditional tea that they have been drinking before Jesus was even born! Iran is BEARLY getting green tea. Its starting to get a little bit more popular but its very hard to consume over there. The way how they drink their tea is very how can i say differnt from everything else I have seen so far. They serve the tea and stuff, but before you drink it you must put a very hard sugar ice cube in you mouth. THE WHOLE THING!!! >=O then you drink your tea until its completly done. The snacks that they serve you is basicly fruit. When ever you anter a house of somebody they bring you tea and snacks inmediatly without asking. If there is something that you dont like you dont say that you dont like it you just dont touch it you leave it there. Some of the differences between the other countries that drink tea is that in Iran they dont have tea ceremonies. To them tea is like coke for us. They dont technically have to be dreesed in their traditional clothing. They dont drink it in a tea room. Its just a very nice thing for them to drink and to have. They dont pour the tea in a tiny porcelain cup they serve it in a tall transparent cup glass the people over there tend to love looking at the color of the tea. I also had the chance to taste Darjeeling tea the original way. I didnt want to do what most of the people did. They would get the tea and put all this water in there and diped cookis and dumped 5 blocks of sugar cubes in the cup. NO! What I decided to do is to get my cup to get full all the way to the top. No water added and one ice cube. I placed the cube slowly into my mouth. I thought i was beeing CRAZY!!!! i was about to put in my mouth one of the strongest black tea that there is in the world. I was afraid I was gonna spit the whole drink out and emberrace mysef. But i just decided to get over with it. It was a very hot dark tasting. Very strong it tasted like black coffee only without the coffee taste you know what mean xD The whole sugar cube melted in the first sip that I had of that tea. Thats how hot it was. I was chiking on all that sugar stuck in my throught. So i had to drink the rest of the it. I am actually proud and happy that i got the chance of to drink the most expensive tea on earth. which is the Darjeelian tea. I dont understand why people were messing the tea. I mean its the only time in my life im going to have the chance to drink something so expensive. I just decide to drink it the original way so i can expirience the real original tasting. Till now I am very satisfied with what I have done and learned this whole entire week. I am looking forward to monday for the Serentea fieldtrip. Word count:643
Today we had the pleasure of learning about the tea in Iran. People in Iran drink tea throughout the day, in the morning, afternoon, and evening. The tea from Iran can be kind of strong but you can put in more hot water to make it less bitter. Just like in the other tea ceremonies, something is served to the guests, but unlike the other ceremonies, fruits are served instead. It’s rude to not accept the food when given. If you didn’t want the food then you could just take the food, put it on your plates then just don’t eat it if you don’t want it. Coffee was the main beverage in Iran over the 15th century. In 1899, Iran was able to successfully cultivate tea in the northern provinces. The color of Iranian tea is red and the taste is fairly light. We also learned that Black tea has many health affects, but not as great as green tea. Black tea can lower your cholesterol , gives you healthy bone, teeth, skin, and your gums. Black tea might also help you burn body fat. I also learned that tea is one of the most greatly consumed beverage. In Africa, people in South Africa consume more red tea while people in Northern Africa consume more green tea.
Today in “The World of Tea” IIW I managed to finally complete my ten facts for the map assignment the group must accomplished along with the map itself. Though today we focused on tea in Iran courtesy of Ms. Ranjbaran. It was very lovely to try the tea of her home land which was black since that’s traditionally drunk in Iran. In Iran as well tea is a very daily and sociable thing among family and friends being consumed at various times throughout the day. They use a device called a “Samovar” which boils water in a canister that also is used to dilute the tea if it is too strong. I noticed that Iranians “cook” their tea longer than most would for ten to fifteen minutes. Another custom is to have sugar cubes which are put into the mouth and used with the tea to sweetened it as well as serving guests without question. I think this country thrives on respect, and mannerisms which make the people easy to get along with which I admire a lot. It’s also interesting how they also instead of junk food or finger foods when serving guests use fruits as a treat also to help with drinking the strong tea. Though it’s said that a natural sweetener for the Iranians are date fruits which is an interesting fact. However the tea itself has this really earthy texture to it which gives it a more defined flavour opposed to the other tea’s I’ve had in the past which is quite delicious. It almost makes me think about coffee though a lot more healthier than the drink itself. Overall all it was another wonderful experience with only one day left in this amazing IIW.
Day four- 1/7/10- Today in the World of Tea IIW we were able to experience the culture of Iranian Tea. Ms. Ranjbaran, a former staff member, was born in Iran so she brought some traditional tea and sweets. How they drink Tea in Iran is very different from other cultures. They mainly drink strictly black tea, in which they have the option to dilute it with water, and if they want sugar they put a sugar cube in their mouth, hold it with their teeth, and drink the tea. I was able to experience this and I have to say that it was quite interesting, and fairly difficult, to do. You have to be able to reach the perfect medium so that your sugar cube doesn’t melt too fast, or too slow. After learning about the culture of tea in Iran, we continued to work on our posters and facts. I managed to complete all of my ten facts and get most of our poster accomplished. Finding facts, that other people didn’t already have, was fairly hard I have to say. Africa, as I’ve said before, drinks mainly two teas green and rooibus, however, there is more info for rooibus tea, as it is more famous. Though I managed to find ‘em all and I even learned why different parts of Africa drink different types of tea. Green tea, in the north, is due to the Asia trading route and rooibus/black tea, in the south, is due to British colonies in Africa. Overall this IIW has been a lot of fun, and I can’t wait for the British High tea experience. It will be amazing, I can just feel it. -Greggory Miller Word Count:278
In our final day in “The World of Tea” IIW we experienced an “Afternoon Tea” at first I thought it was a high tea, but that’s when the noblemen get together and drink. It was a lovely experience because I had a million cups of tea (figure of speech). Surprisingly enough I felt very full as if I had a meal after having scones, and four cups of the delicious herbal drink. I’ve also learned that most tea’s come from one type of plant, and how you process it defines what it is along with the flavouring if add it as well. It’s also improper to hold your pinkie up when drinking though it is a stereotype that has been around for a long time which can be rude in some cultures. However instead you made a closed hand gesture when drinking the tea. It’s also needed to drink multiple cups of tea to really absorb the nutritional benefits. It’s also normal to have tea in very small portions by that I mean moderation among daily drinkers. Another thing about High tea mentioned earlier is that it was for the men coming back from work late that would have their last meal with tea. It’s also good manners to instead make a clanging sound when adding sweetener to softly and gently swish the liquid back and forth to mix the additive. This also goes along with only taking one appetizer at a time letting your peers also do the same for politeness among the group. When I tasted all the cups of tea I decided that the spicy chai tea was my favorite because of the exciting flavours. Over all I am very pleased with this IIW group, and I can’t wait for next year.
Day five- Final Day- 1/10/11 Today was the last day for the World of Tea IIW and it was also a full day long. This allowed us for the opportunity for a field trip, which we went to Serenitea. It was a british High tea place and it was absolutely amazing. They served us at least ten types of tea, to which I put in two teaspoons of sugar in each. Each of the types of tea tasted and smelled very good, and as a bonus the teamaster there told us all about tea. How it is made, nutritional values, and also how it originated, (the most well accepted story anyway). The lecture was very interesting and I learned a lot about tea, that I was unsure of. Though what I loved the most was the conversation we had at the tea place. We sat in our own groups, and prior to actually going to Serenitea we were told that the conversation is a very important part of a tea experience. I have to say it sure was an experience for was really fun, especially when Daniel accidentally put salt in his tea and proceeded to drink it. I couldn't stop laughing. Overall it was a really fun IIW and I can’t wait for next year’s IIW. Tea is amazing! -Greggory Miller Word count: 216
Friday was the last day of IIW and I enjoyed the visit to the tea shop in Sugar land very much. The teas at Serenitea was very delicious. We tasted many teas that day but my favorites were Chocolate Nut black tea, which is chocolate and almond, and Comfy Cozy, which is green tea and ginger. They were delicious and each one of the teas that we tasted each had a different fragrant. We learned that in China, a long time ago, they used compressed tea as currency. Tea was believed to be found in China when a scholar was drinking boiling water when a tea leaf floated into his cup. Tea then traveled to many different countries and used to be drank by upper-class people. Everybody started to drink it after that. We also learned that you can also decaffeinate tea. When you pour hot water into your tea dump the first batch making you lose 70%-80% of the caffeine in the tea. In the past, workmen used to take a break in the afternoon and drink as well. Tea is well known all over the world and some countries work more than other. There are only tow plantations in the U.S growing tea. One is Arizona, which everybody knows ( Arizona Tea). I will miss tasting different teas everyday now that IIW is over but since now I know so much about tea, I’m sure my tea will taste better from now on.
Latst day ok so today was the last day i was kind of sad, but exited at the same time. It was the day of the fiedtrip. We went to serenity tea. A special shop/restaurant place. You have to be bring more than 4 people. You sit down in a nice elegan pretty table. Each tea cup is so detailed and so pretty. There werent any repeated cups they were all unique. They told us we were going to try 18 difrent types of teas. It was a challenge once everybody was done with the first two cups of tea the scones came out. OH THEY WERE SO GOOD!!!!!! They served it with lemon tart sort of jelly and dey gave us creeme chese. I want scones now!!!! xD anyway we learned about how tea is maid from the leaf and how important it is. We also learned about all the bad stuff from fake tea which is the tea bag kind. Turns out the only thing that is its the trash. Its all the stuff that they dont need from the real tea. Ofcourse we had to learn how to drink tea properly. haha i did something wrong already. Everybody knows that you must put your pinky up well YOUR WRONG! If you do that it basicly mean F*** OFF!!!! haha i didnt know that so be careful!!!!! i really miss that class. Everymorning i want tea. It has been two days since the class was over. I want tea and so should you. word bank:253
Joanna M. Word count:295 11-12-10 Last day of IIW the whole class got to go to a field trip to "Serenety tea room". On the way there I didn't know what to expect from the place, all I knew was that it wasnt going to be a normal tea tasting like we had on the frist day. When we got there I noticed a lot of tables set to look really preaty and fancy, it was really cool. As we got in everyone imidietly chose places to sit, I got to sit with Elena, Soumbiya, hannah and our some our two teachers for the week. As the person was serving tea, it was quite interesting the conversations we had in the table. We talked about travels, the tea we were drinking and other stuff i can't remember, but it was really fun. In the table we got to eat scones with really yummy sauces, I only ate the lemon sauce since I'm not a fan of cream. The scones tasted really good and the tea was yuumy even though some of the teas tasted really bitter >.< We also heard the lady in charge talk to us about tea and I learned that Rooibos tea is NOT REAL TEA, that really surprised me. When we exited the building, we all took a group picture and were ready to leave. On the way back me and Elena kind of got a bit hyper and when we calmed down we watched "scott pilgrim vs the world". Going back to class we saw a video of all the pictures that were taken during the week and we got to drink iced tea from chick-fil-a. Basically the last day of IIW was a really fun day and I preatty much enjoyed the whole week.
Day 1
ReplyDelete"Introduction to the World of Tea" - (1/4/11)
Today in “The World Of Tea” IIW we were fortunate enough to have a guest speaker from a tea shop called “The Path Of Tea”. Thia McKann the representative who spoke to us happened to be a certified Tea master and there are only fourteen in the country. She talked about four different types of tea which are White, Green, Oolong, and Black produced in different ways. What was interesting about how the tea is made is that the processes derive from each other with White tea as the purest form while Black is the most “Artificial” being the most processed out of all of them. However when it came to the topic of conventional tea against organic the conventional tea is a non-beneficial drink losing it’s properties being produced for manufacturer reasons. A fact about the factory made tea is that farmers mass producing the tea spray (Twenty times) many chemicals on their plants which have enough “Poison” to kill a Tiger. Though the organic had many healthy benefits such as fighting cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, and even the nervous system depending on the form of tea you drank. This herbal drink with a long history actually began it’s circulation west from it’s origin in China thanks to the “Silk Road” where it prospered in growth within many other countries. Another interesting tid-bit about tea is that it takes the flavour of the substance it resides near by which creates a whole new world for the drink to grow, and still now many flavours and techniques are still being made today.
By: Aaron Nguyen, Word Count: 267
Phung Tran, January 5, 2011 Word Count-298
ReplyDeleteToday I really like the presentation about tea coming from the only person in Houston who is a certified tea master. During the tea tasting the best tea was the white tea. It wasn't as strong as the other teas and was easier to drink. The green tea with strawberries in them was my least favorite. It was hard to drink but it smelled really nice. My favorite type of tea would have to teas that have barely any flavor. When drinking this type of tea I feel more relaxed then drinking others. I learned that tea has many health benefits including stress relief, fighting germs, or even skin care. The best teas are from Japan and China. In Japan they usually serve you treats with your tea and only give you a little bit of tea so you would stay longer. If you drink 3-5 cups of black tea in a day, your chance of dying from a stroke is lowered 44%. Also, the type of water you use also affects the taste of the tea. Tap water will make the tea taste really bad. I am learning about the tea from Africa and researching Cameroon. The first bushes that were grown there was planted in 1914 at Tole on the fertile slopes of Mount Cameroon. The production of the tea there was discontinued in 1948 and did not start again until 1952. Some of the drinks that they drink there are Ndu and Tole. Ndu and Tole tea is recommended to be in the morning or afternoon but Tole tea can be drunk in any hour of the day. Both teas are also recommended to be drunk with milk in them, but if you do it takes out all the health benefits out of the tea.
Day one-1/4/11-
ReplyDeleteAfter returning from Winter Break, I attended The World of Tea IIW. To start things off with a blast the only certified Teamaster in Texas visited us to give a lecture on White, Black, Green, Rooipos, and Oolong Tea, while allowing us to drink the tea as she spoke. The first thing I learned was that different types of tea are basically the same ingredients, except that the process of making the tea determines the type of tea. For example: white tea is made when you pick the top two leaves and dry them in a bamboo tray, while green tea is made when you steam the leaves, instead of drying them out. Another thing I learned was that tea is very good medicinally. White tea is good for preventing strep, green tea is good against cancer, oolong tea is good for preventing depression and creating t-cells, black tea is good for your cardiovascular system, and rooipos tea is good for the digestive system. However, as good as tea can be for you, drinking black tea with kidney stones can be dangerous and drinking tea with milk completely negates all the medicinal effects from tea. When she finished her lecture about tea, I had the opportunity to ask her a question. I asked how people are able to implement flavours in teas, since the tea we tasted had a hint of flavour in it. Interestingly enough, she replied that the flavour is created if you brew that particular item with it. So if you wanted a peach flavoured tea, you would brew the peach with the tea leaves; a lot like the distilling process in making perfume.
-Greggory Miller
Word Count: 281
Day 2 - (1/5/11)
ReplyDeleteIn Today’s session in “The World Of Tea” IIW we had a more work oriented period of time where all the groups focused on producing the different “Tea Maps” for each of the continents in the world. The group I’m in specializes in teas from Africa which ended up being very interesting because almost all the different types of tea except Rooibus (found in South Africa) where accumulated from foreign settlers (European) bringing in various tea plants to grow as a cash crop mainly during the mid 1800’s - 1950’s. Though from looking at the vast regions within Africa I came to the conclusion that besides Rooibus Tea that the people sell a lot of black tea due to the tastes of the people liking their tea strong and quite bitter. Another interesting tid-bit I learned was that Kenya is the country in Africa that’s one of the world’s largest tea exporters selling quite a bit of crops across the world. However besides doing more research our group was fortunate to experience and observe a rendition of what would be a “Japanese Tea Ceremony”. This type of formal gathering consist of four different principles which are Wa, Kei, Sei, Jaku (In english in respective order it means harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility). Which give the radiance to the whole aspect of drinking tea with others while being treated equally regardless of your social stature. The women of Japanese culture who portrayed the ceremony told us, an interesting tid-bit that tea ceremonies were started during war periods of the Samurai to have a period of relaxation while clearing the mind of outside thoughts. Overall it was a very interesting day, and I can’t wait to see what tomorrow has in store for us.
By: Aaron Nguyen
Word Count: 279
Day two- 1/5/11-
ReplyDeleteIn today’s schedule for The World of Tea IIW we were going to have the chance to see a traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony take place. Though before we were going to do that we had the opportunity to be able to research about tea in our respective continents. In Africa I learned that there is actually a fairly big divide in tea within the continent. Apparently rooipus and black tea is drunk more in the southern parts of Africa, while in northern Africa they drink more green tea. I came to this conclusion as each of our group members picked their two countries/cities within Africa. Evidently each southern country/city only drank black or rooipus, and the northern parts only drank green tea. Just by looking at this information I got the thought that this can be one of the reasons why the cultural diversity between different countries of the same continent can be so great.
After learning these interesting tidbits, it was time to attend the Japanese Tea Ceremony. From my perspective it was quite interesting to watch. It was quiet, respectful, and calming. The sweet that they gave us had a powdery feeling to it, but it had an interesting watermelon flavour to it. They also served us the traditional tea: green tea. It smelled almost exactly like grass. When I tasted it, it had a bitterness to it, but overall it wasn’t that bad of a tea to drink. Though the Though it was the feeling of equality that made me like it.Since it takes place in a small room they have to crawl through a small door. That door represents that all social classes are nullified and everyone is equal. If everyone had this tradition, maybe peace won’t be as hard to achieve.
-Greggory Miller
Word Count: 299
Phung Tran, January 5, 2011 word count-250
ReplyDeleteLearning about the Japanese Tea ceremony was an interesting treat for today. We got to learn, not only about the tea ceremony, we also got to learn about some Japanese culture. We learned that it takes years for someone to put on their kimono correctly and it takes a professional only 10-15 minutes. Different kimonos are also worn for each season. They were worn all the time a long time ago but now are only worn on special occasions. More formal kimonos have very little print on them. The place where the tea ceremony takes place is a small room and is performed on Tatami mats. People go through a door that was small. The door was meant to represent that everyone at the tea ceremony is equal, class did not matter. During the tea ceremony , the host takes out a small piece of cloth and wipes the tea cup even though this action might seem useless, it means that the host wants to show the guest that everything is clean. When I tasted the tea that was prepared it tasted bitter and the treat that was served also tasted really sweet. The sweetness from the tea balances out the bitterness from the tea. Today I started my research on Cameroon, a country in Africa. German planters were experimenting with growing tea bushes between 1884-1914. The first bushes were planted in 1914 at Tole on the fertile slopes of Mount Cameroon. I hope tomorrow will be a productive day.
Day 3 - (1/6/11)
ReplyDeleteToday in the third day of “The World of Tea” IIW we’ve once again primarily focused on our own specialized tea continents researching facts while just learning about the herbal drink itself in general. Today however I learned more about the infamous Rooibos Tea from South Africa which is pretty popular among the countries around it as well as the world itself. Rooibus the tea plant is not only used to make a tea but also as enhancers in food, and in medical properties for people depending on which part of South Africa you are residing within. Also this morning I had the pleasure of trying a white peach tea courtesy of Ms. Martin. The interesting thing I’ve started to infer about Tea in general is the fact taste plays very little in the drink itself but rather makes the drinker feel good while benefiting their health. Though it’s just a pleasure to be able to take in a pure substance and feel one with nature when the drink is consumed. Although another thing today that our IIW group was lucky to experience was the “Korean Tea Ceremony”. Unlike the Japanese Tea Ceremony the Korean one allows for a more casual experience made for a social get together rather than a formal gathering. The tea itself was green tea because from what I’ve learned today many east asian countries thrive on this type of tea. Though the tea in this ceremony was very weak compared to other teas, but still just as refreshing if not more. Overall the connection I’ve noticed in each ceremony drinking tea was for the main purpose of relaxation to also obtain unity with those you’re drinking with. In the end today was a good experience, and I’m anxious for what’s coming next tomorrow.
By: Aaron Nguyen
Word Count: 299
Phung Tran January 6, 2011 word count- 248
ReplyDeleteYesterday we learned about the Japanese tea ceremony and now today we learned about the Korean ceremony. Unlike the Japanese tea ceremony, which is about meditation and you do not talk, the Korean ceremony is mostly about building your relationship with your neighbors. Many conversations go on during the ceremony. Another difference in the two ceremonies is the fact that the Japanese use green tea powder instead of green tea leaves. Although, the similarity between the two ceremonies is that both ceremonies have sweets served before drinking the tea. Also, the green tea powder can be used in different foods. Young tea leaves are not harmful, but have special effects when eaten. At first green tea was used in food and medicine, but with the development of storage technology, it has became a material for drink. The tea ceremony in Korea was not as traditional as the Japanese tea ceremony. The Korean ceremony helped gathered upper-class women and build their relationships with each other. The tea that was served today was way less bitter than the one at the Japanese tea ceremony since the Korean care more about the taste more where as in Japan, they care about the color of the tea. While researching about my country, Cameroon in Africa, I learned that the 3 factories within Cameroon each produce 3 different type of tea. Tole’s low-grown teas, Ndu’s high-grown tea, and Djuttitsa’s clonal teas are all of excellent quality. I look forward to what tomorrow brings.
Day three- 1/6/11-
ReplyDeleteToday in The World of Tea IIW, we had a Korean Tea ceremony planned, however, it wouldn’t happen until later in the day, giving us the opportunity to research more on our continents. Having Africa, I found a few more facts that were somewhat interesting. The first, was that next to water, tea is the second most drunk beverage in the world. It was really surprising since you would think it would be a soft drink or even coffee. Another fact I learned is that in Africa there is a certain type of green tea called attaya.. Though it takes a long time to brew, making restaurants unable to sell them, instead, attaya is brewed for more social occasions. Whether with friends or family they would make the tea and pass it on to each other, each brew having a different taste than the other. Tea is a really big part of social-like gatherings.
Also, speaking of social gatherings, the Korean Tea ceremony we attended was very interesting and completely different than the Japanese Tea ceremony. Rather than being very quiet and relaxing, the Korean Ceremony was mostly a social gathering to talk and chat with friends and family. It is also performed more often than the Japanese, since their ceremonies were mostly for special occasions. Another difference was the tea. Koreans have a process of drinking tea in which they use each of their senses to drink it. Along with a different method of drinking, their tea differs in taste, as it isn’t as bitter as Japanese green tea since they focus more on taste and appearance of the tea. Overall, comparing the two seemed very interesting and I wish that I had this cultural background for it seems very nice to do.
-Greggory Miller
Word Count:294
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ReplyDeleteJoanna M.
ReplyDelete1-4-11
Today during IIW a lady that is the only certified tea master in Texas, came to talk to the class about tea and about some of its benefits. The lady brought with her 5 different types of tea that we could drink; white peach tea, green tea, oolong tea, black tea, and rooibos tea. The teas she brought turned out, are actually really good for us. I learned that if you drink 3 to 4 cups of tea (I don't remember what kind)it helps you with many health issues. Since the lady was talking way too fast for me to write all the information down, so I only got to write down the process for how to prepare white tea. The process is: You pick up two leaves and put them in bamboo plates and then leave them there to dry. The five teas that the lady brought with her, tasted really good. After tasting the different teas I just wanted to have more, the flavors that were added to the teas made the teas taste way better then before. So far being in this IIW has not been a bad choice and I'm glad I chose it. I hope to learn more during this week in this IIW
Day 1: 1/4/11
ReplyDeleteWe had a guest speaker come to westchester today for our IIW for tea. Thia McKann from the tea shop The Path of Tea. Sheis the only tea expert in Texas. She served us 5 differnt types of tea Green, White, Black, Oolong and Red Bush tea. She started telling us how tea originated from China. When tea started to get known only a few people had access to it in the world only once a year. From China it passed down to Japan to Korea and so on. The one thats the most popular in East Asia is Green tea. Its the best tea for reducing stress. It great for the heart, and helps with any type of cancer. But you have to drink 3 to 5 cups a day for health benefits. Most people dont know how to get the benefits of tea. It has a little trick to it you see. If you put milk in general in your tea cup it just zaps the good stuff of the tea out there is no use to drink cys you took everything that you need away. Also when you make your tea you dont want your water to be too hot or again all the good stuff will be gone. The trick is not to have your water too hot nor to cold. Its best for your water to be very purified. Dont use Ozarka or Tap Water to acidic. You also want to use organic tea. Most of the tea bags we have these days have a very strong chemical so they can release the tea quicker when its droped into the tea cup. Some teas have so much of that chemical that it can kill a tiger! Yet people buy that stuff.
Sandra Jaros
Word Count:296
^^^^^^^^word count:212
ReplyDeleteJoanna M.
ReplyDelete1-5-11
word count: 455
Today in my IIW we had the privilege to have a group of Japanese ladies come and perform a cultural Japanese Tea Ceremony for us. As we walked in the room we noticed that the ladies were wearing what is called a kimono, the kimono's had many pretty flower designs. Apart from the kimono, one of the ladies was wearing a Yukata, which is a summer kimono. In the room there was this mat thing that is called a “tatami mat”, the mat is where the guests sit. Unfortunately there wasn't room for everyone in the mat, so only three people could volunteer to take part of the ceremony meanwhile the rest of us sat outside the mat. As the ceremony started we all watched all the steps that were taken to perform the ceremony. The first thing is that when a person enters the door, they must put a fan in front of them and bow at the entrance. Once already bowed, they slowly scooted themselves in until they reached at the space where they need to sit. When the host enters; everyone must bow (even the host), the host enters and starts preparing the tea. As the host is preparing the tea, a helper comes inside and hands over a platter of sweets to drink with the tea. The helper bows down in front of the first guest, which is the guest of honor, and the guests also bow down. After bowing down the guests is allowed to get a sweet, but before he/she says something in Japanese that means “sorry for having a sweet before you”. After the guests gets the sweet they pass the tray and the same process keeps going on until the last guest gets a sweet. By that time the host has finished preparing the tea and starts serving it, the same process is done with the tea that was done with the sweet. As the host serves the tea, he/she turns the cup clockwise twice and then sets it down, the guest then turn it counter clockwise and picks up the cup, he/she drinks a sip then turn it clockwise and clean where your lips touch, then put the cup down. When the ceremony is over, everyone bows again and then they leave. During the ceremony everyone is very silent since during the ceremony is a chance to meditate and everyone to accept them and be equal. There are four objectives to the Japanese tea ceremony which are: Harmony, Respect, Purity and Tranquility. I have to admit that having the chance to experience a Japanese tea ceremony was a very good experience and it was quite enjoyable to learn from this experience.
Day 2: 1/5/11
ReplyDeleteIt was Japanes ceremony. Everybody has seen them in mangas and animes. Everybody thinks oh this is so cool!!!! I wish I get to do that someday in my life. Well yeah its really cool to participate and do one of those, but really its hard work. I thought completly wrong about it. The room is very small and the entrance is very narrow. u have to bend on your knees and scoot yourself inwards. As soon as your inside the tea room u need to be completly quiet u need to show alot of respect. You walk down along to the end of the room. So on and so on until the last person is seated.You bow before you enter the room and when your inside. Also before you sit down you bow. The host enters the room through another door with all the untesils. Places them down and starts brewing the coffee. When done its placed in a big bowl. Its turned clockwise 2 times placed down and bow. The guest drinks it cleans the place were their lips touched. You turn the bowl clockwise again serve it to the next person beside you and bow. Son and so on until the last person is done. The tea that they serve is a very strong and bitter taste. Its Green tea very thick. Its like the mushroom creme soup thinckness. Its powdery. They give you a tiny little coockie the size is like a quarter. Very sweet. It helps alot when you drink the tea. You must slurp you tea to show how much you like the tea. The host gets up picks up all the cups utensils etc. The host comes back everybody bows and leaves the room. The whole time you are silent. The reason how the whole tea thing in peoples houses started was because of the war era. The room is very small because its a sign of equality. The moment people come in the tea room everyone is equal. Tea rooms were created so you would forget about everything that was bad outside. The hsound of tea realxed people. The women wear kimonos as a sign of respect and tradition. till this very day tea ceremonie are still heald and still important but not practiced as usual as in the early days.
Sandra Jaros
Word Count:389
Day 3: 1/6/11
ReplyDeleteAfter my experience witht the japanese ceremony i was just impresed how does people like that type of tea. i drank it once in my life and that will be the last one xD. Today we had the Korean ceremony. I personally believe to like the Korean one better. Some women decide to wear their tradional clothes. Not forcely only if they want to. You get to talk as much as you like in the ceremony. The room isnt small its big so you can invite as many people as you want to socialize with. The tea is yummier. You still have respect and all of that but you just have for fun. Also you can do the tea ceremony whenever you want for who ever you want. The sweets that they serve you are rice cakes. Over there the presentation of food is more important than the taste of it. So most of the sweets taste plain and they are all the same. Also the second type of "sweet" that they serve is spicy little snacks. I tend to prefer to have the Korean Tea Ceremony. Because its in my type of enviroment. I am defently not the type of person that can stay still forever and not talk. I feel so blagh. i believe everyone should have happiness!!!! =D and that is the Korean Tea Ceremony =D
Sandra Jaros
Word Count:229
Joanna M.
ReplyDelete1-6-11
word count:263
Today it turns out that we are having a tea ceremony from the perspective of the Korean culture, it was quite wonderful. A tea ceremony from Korea is actually quite different than the Japanese ceremony, in some things. In the Japanese ceremony; everyone is so silent and just meditate with the help of tea, while in the Korean ceremony; the tea is an excuse for people to gather and socialize. What I liked about the Korean ceremony was that; when preparing the tea they actually focus more on the color, aroma and taste of the tea rather than just the color (like the Japanese do). The Koreans seem to also like green tea just like the Japanese do, but the Koreans prepare their tea with loose leaves and not powder tea. The Korean green tea seems to have a nice enjoyable aroma and a nice simple taste. During the Korean ceremony they also serve sweets with tea, the sweets more commonly served are rice cake and some other Korean delights. I was really looking forward to eating Korean delights, but since not most people would enjoy them we just ate normal chocolate sweets. In Korea it turns out that the ladies instead of wearing kimon's (like the japanese do) they wear what is called a “hanbok”. Between the Japanese and Korean ceremonies, I liked the Korean best. The reason is because it helps us to find a better way to socialize with our friends and family and I personally think that the Korean culture is just AWESOME!!! ^^ kamshabnida~
Joanna M.
ReplyDelete1-7-11
word count:334
Today we had the privilage to have an old staff member from our school, visiting us and explaining to us her heritage on tea from where she comes from. It was quite interesting to know that before they had tea, they used to be a coffe country, but as tea was introduced to Iran, it became more popular and now they drink it all the time. Tea was succesfully cultivated in the north part of the country (Gilan and Mazandoran) in the year 1899. Also in 1934, was when the first modern tea factory was created. Now in Iran they have over 100 factories which produce over fifty thousand tons of tea, and it still isnt enough since they still have to impprt more tea from other countries. It's quite interesting that over in Iran they traditionally drink black tea, which in my opinion was quite bitter >.<, with a a sugar cube and no they don't put it in the tea but in their mouths. I tried it but I have to say thati failed at it :(. The black tea that was served to us had a redish color and it was quite bitter, that even with the sugar cube I could still taste the bitterness and i didn't like it. It turns out that tea is called "chaai" so everytime someone says to drink your chaai it means to drink your tea, which in Iran is heard a lot. In Iran people drink tea at anytime of the day; when they wake up, before a meal, during free time etc. It was quite interesting to know that in Iran they use little glass cups instead of porcelain cups like most countries do. The reason is kind of because they like to watch the color of tea as they drink it. It was quite interesting what I learned but I have to admit that i really didn't like the tea, it was just TOO BITTER, so for me it tasted quite yucky.>_<
Day 4: 1/7/11
ReplyDeleteToday we had a speaker from Iran. They are lovers of tea. They have more than 100 factories making tea and have 50,000 teas of tea per year. Over there you wake up first thing they give you is tea, beofre lunch you have tea, after lunch they give you tes, before dinner you get tea and before you go to bed you have tea. At the end of the day you basicly had 5 cups of tea which means you get the health benefit of it as i said earlier above. Their tea is differnt. Its strong but not bitter. Its basicly Black tea that they drink which is the traditional tea that they have been drinking before Jesus was even born! Iran is BEARLY getting green tea. Its starting to get a little bit more popular but its very hard to consume over there. The way how they drink their tea is very how can i say differnt from everything else I have seen so far. They serve the tea and stuff, but before you drink it you must put a very hard sugar ice cube in you mouth. THE WHOLE THING!!! >=O then you drink your tea until its completly done. The snacks that they serve you is basicly fruit. When ever you anter a house of somebody they bring you tea and snacks inmediatly without asking. If there is something that you dont like you dont say that you dont like it you just dont touch it you leave it there. Some of the differences between the other countries that drink tea is that in Iran they dont have tea ceremonies. To them tea is like coke for us. They dont technically have to be dreesed in their traditional clothing. They dont drink it in a tea room. Its just a very nice thing for them to drink and to have. They dont pour the tea in a tiny porcelain cup they serve it in a tall transparent cup glass the people over there tend to love looking at the color of the tea. I also had the chance to taste Darjeeling tea the original way. I didnt want to do what most of the people did. They would get the tea and put all this water in there and diped cookis and dumped 5 blocks of sugar cubes in the cup. NO! What I decided to do is to get my cup to get full all the way to the top. No water added and one ice cube. I placed the cube slowly into my mouth. I thought i was beeing CRAZY!!!! i was about to put in my mouth one of the strongest black tea that there is in the world. I was afraid I was gonna spit the whole drink out and emberrace mysef. But i just decided to get over with it. It was a very hot dark tasting. Very strong it tasted like black coffee only without the coffee taste you know what mean xD The whole sugar cube melted in the first sip that I had of that tea. Thats how hot it was. I was chiking on all that sugar stuck in my throught. So i had to drink the rest of the it. I am actually proud and happy that i got the chance of to drink the most expensive tea on earth. which is the Darjeelian tea. I dont understand why people were messing the tea. I mean its the only time in my life im going to have the chance to drink something so expensive. I just decide to drink it the original way so i can expirience the real original tasting. Till now I am very satisfied with what I have done and learned this whole entire week. I am looking forward to monday for the Serentea fieldtrip.
Sandra Jaros
Word Count:643
Today we had a speaker from Iran. They are lovers of tea. They have more than 100 factories making tea and have 50,000 teas of tea per year. Over there you wake up first thing they give you is tea, beofre lunch you have tea, after lunch they give you tes, before dinner you get tea and before you go to bed you have tea. At the end of the day you basicly had 5 cups of tea which means you get the health benefit of it as i said earlier above. Their tea is differnt. Its strong but not bitter. Its basicly Black tea that they drink which is the traditional tea that they have been drinking before Jesus was even born! Iran is BEARLY getting green tea. Its starting to get a little bit more popular but its very hard to consume over there. The way how they drink their tea is very how can i say differnt from everything else I have seen so far. They serve the tea and stuff, but before you drink it you must put a very hard sugar ice cube in you mouth. THE WHOLE THING!!! >=O then you drink your tea until its completly done. The snacks that they serve you is basicly fruit. When ever you anter a house of somebody they bring you tea and snacks inmediatly without asking. If there is something that you dont like you dont say that you dont like it you just dont touch it you leave it there. Some of the differences between the other countries that drink tea is that in Iran they dont have tea ceremonies. To them tea is like coke for us. They dont technically have to be dreesed in their traditional clothing. They dont drink it in a tea room. Its just a very nice thing for them to drink and to have. They dont pour the tea in a tiny porcelain cup they serve it in a tall transparent cup glass the people over there tend to love looking at the color of the tea. I also had the chance to taste Darjeeling tea the original way. I didnt want to do what most of the people did. They would get the tea and put all this water in there and diped cookis and dumped 5 blocks of sugar cubes in the cup. NO! What I decided to do is to get my cup to get full all the way to the top. No water added and one ice cube. I placed the cube slowly into my mouth. I thought i was beeing CRAZY!!!! i was about to put in my mouth one of the strongest black tea that there is in the world. I was afraid I was gonna spit the whole drink out and emberrace mysef. But i just decided to get over with it. It was a very hot dark tasting. Very strong it tasted like black coffee only without the coffee taste you know what mean xD The whole sugar cube melted in the first sip that I had of that tea. Thats how hot it was. I was chiking on all that sugar stuck in my throught. So i had to drink the rest of the it. I am actually proud and happy that i got the chance of to drink the most expensive tea on earth. which is the Darjeelian tea. I dont understand why people were messing the tea. I mean its the only time in my life im going to have the chance to drink something so expensive. I just decide to drink it the original way so i can expirience the real original tasting. Till now I am very satisfied with what I have done and learned this whole entire week. I am looking forward to monday for the Serentea fieldtrip.
ReplyDeleteWord count:643
Phung Tran January 7, 2011 word count-218
ReplyDeleteToday we had the pleasure of learning about the tea in Iran. People in Iran drink tea throughout the day, in the morning, afternoon, and evening. The tea from Iran can be kind of strong but you can put in more hot water to make it less bitter. Just like in the other tea ceremonies, something is served to the guests, but unlike the other ceremonies, fruits are served instead. It’s rude to not accept the food when given. If you didn’t want the food then you could just take the food, put it on your plates then just don’t eat it if you don’t want it. Coffee was the main beverage in Iran over the 15th century. In 1899, Iran was able to successfully cultivate tea in the northern provinces. The color of Iranian tea is red and the taste is fairly light. We also learned that Black tea has many health affects, but not as great as green tea. Black tea can lower your cholesterol , gives you healthy bone, teeth, skin, and your gums. Black tea might also help you burn body fat. I also learned that tea is one of the most greatly consumed beverage. In Africa, people in South Africa consume more red tea while people in Northern Africa consume more green tea.
Day 4 - (1/7/11)
ReplyDeleteToday in “The World of Tea” IIW I managed to finally complete my ten facts for the map assignment the group must accomplished along with the map itself. Though today we focused on tea in Iran courtesy of Ms. Ranjbaran. It was very lovely to try the tea of her home land which was black since that’s traditionally drunk in Iran. In Iran as well tea is a very daily and sociable thing among family and friends being consumed at various times throughout the day. They use a device called a “Samovar” which boils water in a canister that also is used to dilute the tea if it is too strong. I noticed that Iranians “cook” their tea longer than most would for ten to fifteen minutes. Another custom is to have sugar cubes which are put into the mouth and used with the tea to sweetened it as well as serving guests without question. I think this country thrives on respect, and mannerisms which make the people easy to get along with which I admire a lot.
It’s also interesting how they also instead of junk food or finger foods when serving guests use fruits as a treat also to help with drinking the strong tea. Though it’s said that a natural sweetener for the Iranians are date fruits which is an interesting fact. However the tea itself has this really earthy texture to it which gives it a more defined flavour opposed to the other tea’s I’ve had in the past which is quite delicious. It almost makes me think about coffee though a lot more healthier than the drink itself. Overall all it was another wonderful experience with only one day left in this amazing IIW.
By: Aaron Nguyen
Word Count: 289
Day four- 1/7/10-
ReplyDeleteToday in the World of Tea IIW we were able to experience the culture of Iranian Tea. Ms. Ranjbaran, a former staff member, was born in Iran so she brought some traditional tea and sweets. How they drink Tea in Iran is very different from other cultures. They mainly drink strictly black tea, in which they have the option to dilute it with water, and if they want sugar they put a sugar cube in their mouth, hold it with their teeth, and drink the tea. I was able to experience this and I have to say that it was quite interesting, and fairly difficult, to do. You have to be able to reach the perfect medium so that your sugar cube doesn’t melt too fast, or too slow.
After learning about the culture of tea in Iran, we continued to work on our posters and facts. I managed to complete all of my ten facts and get most of our poster accomplished. Finding facts, that other people didn’t already have, was fairly hard I have to say. Africa, as I’ve said before, drinks mainly two teas green and rooibus, however, there is more info for rooibus tea, as it is more famous. Though I managed to find ‘em all and I even learned why different parts of Africa drink different types of tea. Green tea, in the north, is due to the Asia trading route and rooibus/black tea, in the south, is due to British colonies in Africa. Overall this IIW has been a lot of fun, and I can’t wait for the British High tea experience. It will be amazing, I can just feel it.
-Greggory Miller
Word Count:278
The Final Day! - (1/10/11)
ReplyDeleteIn our final day in “The World of Tea” IIW we experienced an “Afternoon Tea” at first I thought it was a high tea, but that’s when the noblemen get together and drink. It was a lovely experience because I had a million cups of tea (figure of speech). Surprisingly enough I felt very full as if I had a meal after having scones, and four cups of the delicious herbal drink. I’ve also learned that most tea’s come from one type of plant, and how you process it defines what it is along with the flavouring if add it as well. It’s also improper to hold your pinkie up when drinking though it is a stereotype that has been around for a long time which can be rude in some cultures. However instead you made a closed hand gesture when drinking the tea. It’s also needed to drink multiple cups of tea to really absorb the nutritional benefits. It’s also normal to have tea in very small portions by that I mean moderation among daily drinkers. Another thing about High tea mentioned earlier is that it was for the men coming back from work late that would have their last meal with tea. It’s also good manners to instead make a clanging sound when adding sweetener to softly and gently swish the liquid back and forth to mix the additive. This also goes along with only taking one appetizer at a time letting your peers also do the same for politeness among the group. When I tasted all the cups of tea I decided that the spicy chai tea was my favorite because of the exciting flavours. Over all I am very pleased with this IIW group, and I can’t wait for next year.
By: Aaron Nguyen
Word Count: 295
Day five- Final Day- 1/10/11
ReplyDeleteToday was the last day for the World of Tea IIW and it was also a full day long. This allowed us for the opportunity for a field trip, which we went to Serenitea. It was a british High tea place and it was absolutely amazing. They served us at least ten types of tea, to which I put in two teaspoons of sugar in each. Each of the types of tea tasted and smelled very good, and as a bonus the teamaster there told us all about tea. How it is made, nutritional values, and also how it originated, (the most well accepted story anyway). The lecture was very interesting and I learned a lot about tea, that I was unsure of. Though what I loved the most was the conversation we had at the tea place. We sat in our own groups, and prior to actually going to Serenitea we were told that the conversation is a very important part of a tea experience. I have to say it sure was an experience for was really fun, especially when Daniel accidentally put salt in his tea and proceeded to drink it. I couldn't stop laughing. Overall it was a really fun IIW and I can’t wait for next year’s IIW. Tea is amazing!
-Greggory Miller
Word count: 216
Phung Tran January 11, 2011 word count-245
ReplyDeleteFriday was the last day of IIW and I enjoyed the visit to the tea shop in Sugar land very much. The teas at Serenitea was very delicious. We tasted many teas that day but my favorites were Chocolate Nut black tea, which is chocolate and almond, and Comfy Cozy, which is green tea and ginger. They were delicious and each one of the teas that we tasted each had a different fragrant. We learned that in China, a long time ago, they used compressed tea as currency. Tea was believed to be found in China when a scholar was drinking boiling water when a tea leaf floated into his cup. Tea then traveled to many different countries and used to be drank by upper-class people. Everybody started to drink it after that. We also learned that you can also decaffeinate tea. When you pour hot water into your tea dump the first batch making you lose 70%-80% of the caffeine in the tea. In the past, workmen used to take a break in the afternoon and drink as well. Tea is well known all over the world and some countries work more than other. There are only tow plantations in the U.S growing tea. One is Arizona, which everybody knows ( Arizona Tea). I will miss tasting different teas everyday now that IIW is over but since now I know so much about tea, I’m sure my tea will taste better from now on.
Latst day
ReplyDeleteok so today was the last day i was kind of sad, but exited at the same time. It was the day of the fiedtrip. We went to serenity tea. A special shop/restaurant place. You have to be bring more than 4 people. You sit down in a nice elegan pretty table. Each tea cup is so detailed and so pretty. There werent any repeated cups they were all unique. They told us we were going to try 18 difrent types of teas. It was a challenge once everybody was done with the first two cups of tea the scones came out. OH THEY WERE SO GOOD!!!!!! They served it with lemon tart sort of jelly and dey gave us creeme chese. I want scones now!!!! xD anyway we learned about how tea is maid from the leaf and how important it is. We also learned about all the bad stuff from fake tea which is the tea bag kind. Turns out the only thing that is its the trash. Its all the stuff that they dont need from the real tea. Ofcourse we had to learn how to drink tea properly. haha i did something wrong already. Everybody knows that you must put your pinky up well YOUR WRONG! If you do that it basicly mean F*** OFF!!!! haha i didnt know that so be careful!!!!! i really miss that class. Everymorning i want tea. It has been two days since the class was over. I want tea and so should you.
word bank:253
Joanna M.
ReplyDeleteWord count:295
11-12-10
Last day of IIW the whole class got to go to a field trip to "Serenety tea room". On the way there I didn't know what to expect from the place, all I knew was that it wasnt going to be a normal tea tasting like we had on the frist day. When we got there I noticed a lot of tables set to look really preaty and fancy, it was really cool. As we got in everyone imidietly chose places to sit, I got to sit with Elena, Soumbiya, hannah and our some our two teachers for the week. As the person was serving tea, it was quite interesting the conversations we had in the table. We talked about travels, the tea we were drinking and other stuff i can't remember, but it was really fun. In the table we got to eat scones with really yummy sauces, I only ate the lemon sauce since I'm not a fan of cream. The scones tasted really good and the tea was yuumy even though some of the teas tasted really bitter >.< We also heard the lady in charge talk to us about tea and I learned that Rooibos tea is NOT REAL TEA, that really surprised me. When we exited the building, we all took a group picture and were ready to leave. On the way back me and Elena kind of got a bit hyper and when we calmed down we watched "scott pilgrim vs the world". Going back to class we saw a video of all the pictures that were taken during the week and we got to drink iced tea from chick-fil-a. Basically the last day of IIW was a really fun day and I preatty much enjoyed the whole week.