Viktoria Jean

“As far as her mom was concerned, tea fixed everything. Have a cold? Have some tea. Broken bones? There’s a tea for that too. Somewhere in her mother’s pantry, Laurel suspected, was a box of tea that said, ‘In case of Armageddon, steep three to five minutes’.”
― Aprilynne Pike, Illusions

Today I’m reminded by a sip of evening black tea, of this tea-riffic afternoon in Qingdao. Sharing some saved photos for whoever needs a glimpse of the outside world now, and be reminded that we’re almost there, right back to where our sense of normalcy resides in an altered world.

On Day Three, we slowed down our pace to indulge in traditional Chinese art of tea appreciation. Dao He Xuan (道和轩) houses an eclectic fusion of the seven types of tea, brewed in ways to accommodate the traditional brew, as well as modern-day habits (tea-bags, lemon on top for vitamin C boosters).

Our tea master educated us on what was good for health, after a consultation on what were our current health ailments and what we hope to achieve from drinking tea. Generally, red tea is considered 凉, and great for detox. So we got one of their premium red teas.

A small cosy private room just for us to stay in, for as long as we want to.

Perhaps tea is just a metaphor for self-healing. It is as much an English essential, as a Chinese method of calming the body and senses.

茶如人生，人生如茶。茶在开水中浮沉，人在社会中沉浮。 茶叶从放入茶杯开始，正如人从母亲怀里开始走出。茶叶等待的是开水高温的考验，人等待的是前程的荆棘丛生。开水冲入后，干茶经历的是又一次重生；人踏上征程后经历的是身心的不断再生。许多人生难解的结，便在时间的缓释中慢慢解开，许多生命里的焦灼，便在生活的沉浮中淡泊下来。茶经历了时间，变得舒展而馨香；人经历了时间，变得坦然而开阔，自我价值不断得以实现。

xoxo,
Jean