Copious amounts of tea is drunk daily. I
wonder what was the world drinking
before the arrival of tea??
A journey by train or bus could never be complete
without having that customary cup of hot tea served by that ubiquitous
chaiwalla who was dextrous enough to balance a hot kettle of tea and a pile
high of clay tea cups with no mishaps.
The most
humble establishments can surprise you with their best cup of tea. Once it was a
spur of the moment decision when we took off for the mountains. Feeling a bit woozy after 5 hours on the lonely road and the
increase in altitude, the sight of the little wood and bamboo hut clinging to
the edge of the mountain was a welcome relief. With shaking legs I made my way
to the front door only to find the single room was packed with 10 other travelers huddled
over a single burning stove. The owner and his wife were beaming with delight. The item on the menu was 1 bowl of hot maggie noodles and a steaming hot mug of tea. Blame it on the crisp clear mountain air, but I had never tasted more excellent tea before.
At an estate near Chabua in the early 1940s natives neath the shelter of umbrellas and the white sahibs stomping around in solar toppee.
Women pluckers on their way back home to bathe and prepare meals for the family. The bond between the tea bush and the hands of the plucker is not easy to put into words.
