聆听茶之静呓

蔡澜老先生曾自问“什么是茶道？”，“答案很清楚，舒服就是。茶是应该轻轻松松之下请客或自用的。纯朴自然，一个‘真’字就跑出来了。真情流露，就有禅味。有禅味，道即生。喝茶，就是这么简单。”其实，一杯茶引出的深意有太多太多，而旅行也可以成为领悟茶道的一部分。当你游走在著名的茶园，了解每一个茶厂的工艺与故事，甚至是在一个可以看得见茶之风景的角落静静发呆，聆听茶的呓语。

Mr.Cai Lan once posed a self-inquiry "what is tea ceremony？" "Te answer is unambiguous： it’s about delightful， as tea should be treated to the guests or drunk by oneself in the relaxing fashion. It’s simple and natural， as the sense of Zen is released simultaneously with the outburst of real feelingsa. Te Way is born in the wake of sense of Zen. Tea-drinking is so simple." In fact， too much profound meanings can be derived from a cup of tea， while travel may become a part of grasping the tea ceremony， you are listening to the private talk of tea.

Walk In the Tea Clouds

Hill Station

The hill station of Munnar， misty and shrouded by the vast expanse of tea plantations， is situated in Kerala State， south of India， a mystical place being called “the God’s Country.”The name of Munnarmay sound unfamiliar to you，but its stunning beauty has been captured by Ang Lee’s movie Life of Pi.The small town sleeps at the confluence of three mountain streams， blooming like a wild lily.

Tea Tree and Banyan

Perched about 1600 m above sea level， the hill station of Munnar， once used to be the summer resort of the erstwhile British administration in south India， is blanketed by tea estates. In the foggy rain， women migrated around the hills picking new green shoots from the tops of the shrubs then placing them in sacks which they pile onto trucks， amid a green candlewick bedspread draped over the crumpled land. Many tea gardens are open to the tourists， as they trekked on the winding road， getting deep into the tea bushes. At a closer look， the size of India tea leaves is slightly bigger than Chinese counterpart. The scorching temperature of India poses risk to women tea pickers； hence， they normally don more than one layer of dress. For more seasoned women tea pickers， they can hold two sacks overhead， one on the left and the other on the right， balanced by the equal distribution of weight. You need to slow down on this journey， embracing the tranquility at its best.

Rest in the Fog

With the urge of experiencing more native Munnar tea， you take on a double-decked houseboat made of rattan， which will circle the river and serve the local tea. The technique of houseboat building is quite sophisticated， as you can sit on the top floor veranda， sipping tea and listening to the sounds of the jungle. Such service can be found at the riverside mooring zone or at hotels of Munnar.

Nuwara Eliya ， Sri Lanka

Green Heartbeat

To the Top City

NuwaraEliya， the tallest town in southern Sri Lanka， was a hill country retreat where the British colonialists could immerse in their pastimes such as fox hunting， deer hunting， elephant hunting， polo， golf and cricket. The terraced tea plantations cover the picturesque landscape as if an emerald sea.

Seek the Premium-Quality Ceylon Black Tea

On the way， tea pickers in gorgeous saris were plucking tender leaves and young leave bud and then dropped them into the bag slung in the back. You can tour the well-known Mackwoods Tea Centre， exposing to each step of the tea-making process from plucking to sorting， withering to rolling， fermenting and grading to drying and packaging. Walking into the factory tea house， a female tea picker sculpture welcomed the visitors. On the left housed thetea-sipping chamber and cafeteria， and on the right stoodrooms selling tea and handicrafts. The teasipping chamber was roomful of visitors from around the world， for none other purpose than savoring theCeylon black tea which vary in altitude and taste.

Uncover Traditional Technique

Every visitor has the desire of stopping by the production workshop. We were shown a big leaf， a small leaf and a young tea leaf bud. There is a small exhibition hall at the exit， where some frayed pictures and illustrations throw light on the tea factory， types of black tea and tea sets. It’s a surprising finding that Mackwoods Tea Centre is responsible for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee blend.

Taste Zen Uji Tea

A Scenic Town on the Riverbank

Uji green tea comes from a riverside town to the south of cosmopolitan Kyoto. When you are somewhere between Kyoto and Nara， you shouldn’t miss the serenity of this small town， with scenic quality akin to the upper Danube or China’s Guilin.Uji was the backdrop for The Tale of Genji， a classic work of Japanese literature written by the Japanese noblewoman and lady-in-waiting MurasakiShikibu in the early years of the 11th century， around the peak of the Heian period， as the rest of the work is known as the “Ten Uji Chapters.”

In contrast to Kyoto， Uji is miniature but lovely. The Uji River makes its way from deep mountains flanked by dense vegetation， as ancient villages and temple sat at the foothill. Many of the tea traders have existed for hundreds of years and have been selling their quality tea to a very elite clientele， century after century.

Byodo-in TemplePrecedes Tea Ceremony

The higher realm of savoring Uji tea is to be integrated into the breathtaking views.Byodo-in temple， a wooden architecture on the bank of Uji River， survives battles and fire only in the Phoenix Hall， which is immortalized at the back of the ubiquitous 10-yen coin， as well as an enduring national treasure for the Japanese. The Phoenix Hall is undergoing renovations until 2015 and as a result is covered up. Visitors are also unable to go inside. Nevertheless， you should instead experience the serenity belonging to Uji； when your mind reaches peacefulness， it’s time for tea-sipping.

Tea Workshops on the Riverbank The approach to Byodoin Temple is lined by maple trees， when in fall the leaves dance in the wind. Boats plying over the tranquil Uji River， you can join a one-hour tour of the river in a flat-bottom boat， complete with a close-up demonstration of cormorant fishing and a chat with the master fisherman. Crossing a bridge， you get to Taihoan， a traditional tea house setting where guests are served matcha（powdered green tea）， and the host gladly shares about the correct tea ceremony etiquette.Itohkyuemon， over 300 years and in its 8th generation， is famed for green-tea flavored ice cream， including the ubiquitous soft-serve cones.

Time for a Simmered Tea

Sitdown cross-legged， refined tea-wares in front hold scented tea and the menu is written on the Xuan （rice） paper in brush strokes， all about Matcha （finely milled or fine powder green tea）. Even for the simplestsampling， the tea house will bring out whole set of tea-ware at ease.

As Uji tea tasting is an elaborate process， as bamboo whisk， spoon， tea bowl， kettle， tea caddy and clock are placed neatly on the plate. The amount of dried tea leaves， amount of water， and the temperature of the water in which it is decocted， the flavor will be different， and this also is the appeal of Sencha. Some varieties expand when steeped to resemble leaf vegetable greens in smell， appearance， and taste.

Fayu Temple

Experience Tea Life

Stray to the tranquil path

Since time immortal， West Lake has been veiled in serenity and placidity. However， seeking a patch of Zen Buddhism place in the middle of urban hurly-burly， you should take refuge in the Fayu village deep in the valley， a place of stone pathways leading to shaded courtyards， quaint restaurants and peaceful abodes. Head for Yongfu temple on Fayu road， move slowly on the half of slope until catching the Amanfayun Resort board.

Check-in to TV-less Room

Fayu ancient village is called “tea village beyond the world.” Though as folk dwelling， the layout of the rooms fits processing and drying out tea.Within the context of preservation of architectural style， all rooms are equipped with floor heating， air conditioning and W-Fi connection. Interior decoration adopts natural materials， as long couch and dinning furniture made of elm trees match seamlessly with the space.

Savor Fragrant Tea amid Zither Music

A few restaurants and eating places are tucked away behind a grove of evergreens and overlook a terrace above Fayun Pathway.“YinxiangGe”（in praise of delicate taste pavilion） and “steamed veggie restaurant” are operated by Amanfayun， other eateries operated by Hangzhou local restaurant chains enrich the choice for visitors， adding sense of community to the picturesque environs. YinxiangGeis the only outlet which serves Western cuisine and the menu features a number of international dishes； steamed veggie restaurant offers leisurely food like steamed dumplings.