Tea Culture

Drinking tea can be a real art form in China. Pu Er Tea is considered a treasure of Yunnan province, and its leaves can be bought from any normal price up to even a thousand dollars per kilogram! Tea bags are not normally used, like we have in the West. Loose leaves sit at the bottom of a glass and one learns to wait until they are all settled (none floating) before attempting to drink. Or, as in these pictures, a process of cleaning the leaves and filtering them in a small pot takes place...

Then it is poured into very small dishes (not really cups) and sipped on. To do it right, however, you must smell it first. Also, don't forget to appreciate its color!

We can literally spend hours tasting different tea, sitting around a special table like this. It is an excellent community experience, as different people can come and go and sit and chat.

A Fine Delay

On a recent trip to the farm project area that we are helping, we got lined up to the side of the road for 1 1/2 hours due to a truck wiping out and blocking the road, several miles ahead. Some vehicles that arrived earlier were stuck much longer!



It usually takes about 9 hours on the road to get to the project area. After the delay, we took off and got some food. Then a little farther along the way, we came to yet another accident and traffice jam! Stuck again for another hour and a half!



So our normal 9 hours on the road became 12 hours! When I later told my wife about all my reeling and buzzing from being in the Jeep so long, she reminded me that it had to be much better than the earlier years, when missionaries of old had to travel that far on ox carts or mules. No paved roads either, and it sometimes took weeks!

We can always find something to be thankful for! And the trip was worth it- had a great time with the workers.