Chai

I was reading Kerouac the other day, and this is what his buddhist friend tells him about the oriental passion for tea ..

"...The first sip is joy the second is gladness, the third is serenity, the fourth is madness, the fifth is ecstasy."

Tea is more than just a passion to us Orientals. It's more of a culture, a tradition, a part of your life.. Starting from the college days when you used to cut classes and sit in the canteen for hours over "Cutting Chai" , to those beautiful rainy afternoons when you can warm your hands over a hot cup of tea and bread samosas, tea permeates our entire desi existence.. It's like a lubricant oiling away the hinges in our lives especially those who work in our sarkari offices.. Couple of rupees given as "Chai Paani" and things mysteriously fall in place. Lost files suddenly reappear and the ever-elusive Babu suddenly appears on his desk to sign his autograph..

In our homes tea is more than just another drink.. Even with the proliferation of bottled water and cokes in our homes today, a hot cup of tea at the end of the day is something we all look forward to. Mebbe it is something to do with how everyone has his own special method of preparing this brew.. There are some people who can literally butcher it, while there are others who can make it divine, divine enough to write/recite haikus about.. as Kerouac's friend does above..

Anyway enjoy your cup.. Here is a nice article I found on CNN/Travel about chinese teahouses. Enjoy..

www.cnn.com/2005/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/12/07/
chinese.teahouse.ap/index.html