Tea Ceremony

After visiting the Summer Palace we again boarded the bus and after a brief shopping excursion we were treated to a Tea Ceremony where we sampled several different types of tea.

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We tried a variety of teas.  I believe we started with Green, then oolong and on to a scented tea. A bit more about scented tea. Scented Tea

Scented tea is created by blending and aromatizing tea leaves with flowers. Tea leaves are highly absorbent and easily accommodate the fragrance and flavor of flowers. The process of aromatization involves layering an assortment of un-dried tea leaves (called a dhool) with scented flowers until the tea leaves absorb the essence of the flowers. The process is repeated until the desired potency is attained. The perfume of the resulting scented tea depends on the type and quantity of flowers used and the period of aromatization. Most scented teas on the market are aromatized only once or twice.

Scented tea is characterized by its strong, floral fragrance, and is believed to be useful in recovering from hangovers. Jasmine tea is the most popular variety of scented tea and is known for its many health-giving benefits. Rose tea and Pearl Orchid are other examples of popular scented teas.

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This started out as a small ball about the size of a large marble. After adding boiling water it “bloomed” into this beautiful floral display.  I don’t know if it is drinkable.  Did any one try it?

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Well Donna, what do you think?

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To most this will simply look like a decorator arrangement of spaghetti, but to the tour members, stiff pasta should have some laughable memories.

After the tea ceremony we moved on to dinner.  One of our esteemed tour members bought this entire collection of “name brand” watches, including the case, from a vendor. 

We finished a long but enjoyable day passing by this decorator spread of seafood on the way out of the restaurant.

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