Monday, July 14, 2014

Sweet Tea for the Heat

I must admit I was never a big friend of tea.

I just can not stand hot beverages, not even coffee or hot chocolate.

Only hot drink I drink for pleasure is a good mochacino, sweet and with enough chocolate to hide the coffee taste.

And that will happen only twice, or maybe three times, a year.

Then I came to live here in Tena, hot and humid, heat and sweat.

You cannot drink the water here, it's too full of things like amoebas.

And warm bottled water is not a treat.

I could not drink sodas or juice because of how much sugar they had.

I tried to drink water with ice and I drank diet soda as much as I could.

Then I started to get cramps in my legs and I was told it was because of dehydration and magnesium deficit.

And I was told to drink sparkling water.

So begun my experimentation.

How will you make sparkling water interesting?

After all, I'm supposed to drink a gallon of it, every day.

I finally have devoloped the perfect formula for me.

And I must say that people who love tea have it right, especially in the South.

I make mine with sparkling water (as doctor ordered), stevia, lemon and tea.

The type of tea depends on the lemons.

There are big juicy, pale lemons that go perfectly with green tea.

And then there are dark green, lumpy lemons, that are almost like blood lemons when you open them.

They give a yellow color and sweeter taste to the tea and go perfectly with some black tea.

I must say: Tea is a divine herb. ~Xu Guangqi

Here are a few quotes from other tea lovers in the history:

Tea is quiet and our thirst for tea is never far from our craving for beauty. ~James Norwood Pratt

The cup of tea on arrival at a country house is a thing which, as a rule, I particularly enjoy. I like the crackling logs, the shaded lights, the scent of buttered toast, the general atmosphere of leisured coziness. ~P.G. Wodehouse

Autumn stars shine through gaps in the wall.... [H]e... brews midnight tea by the stove's ruddy light. ~From a traditional Taoist song, quoted in John Eaton Calthorpe Blofeld, The Chinese Art of Tea

Teas vary as much in appearance as the different faces of men. ~Hui-tsung
 

The sounds of the tea being made invite the peach blossoms to peep in through the window. ~Uson, quoted in Sasaki Sanmi, Sadô Saijiki  

Having picked some tea, he drank it,
Then he sprouted wings,
And flew to a fairy mansion,
To escape the emptiness of the world....
~Chiao Jen


Bring me a cup of tea and the times. - Queen Victoria’s first command upon her Accession to the throne. 

In the South, you can’t marry a man until you know how his mama makes sweet tea. -A quote from Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes, A collection of Southern short Stories. 
The first bowl washed the cobwebs from my mind —
The whole world seemed to sparkle.
A second cleansed my spirit
Like purifying showers of rain,
A third and I was one of the Immortals —
What need now for austerities
To purge our human sorrows?
Worldly people, by going in for wine,
Sadly deceive themselves.
For now I know the Way of Tea is real.
~Chio Jen  


There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea, -Henry James(1843-1916) 

There is a great deal of poetry and fine sentiment in a chest of tea.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson, Letters and Social Aims 

We had a kettle; we let it leak: Our not repairing made it worse. We haven’t had any tea for a week…The bottom is out of the Universe.
~Rudyard Kipling


You can't get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me. ~C.S. Lewis 

Enjoy your tea!

30 comments:

  1. Oh lovely. I am a tea drinker, hot and cold. In fact I think I am a tea monster!

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  2. I LOVE tea, but only warm and milky x

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  3. Brilliant - however I would struggle as don't like tea!

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  4. You make it look so appealing and truly adore and LOVE your tea mug! However, like Emma above, I just can't get into tea no matter how many different types I try.

    Thrifting Diva
    www.thriftingdiva.com

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    1. Thank you, Ayana. I love the mug also. It was a serendipitous find actually, wasn't even looking for a new mug for myself :)

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  5. I love this! Such a beautiful post - and I like the sound of your tea too!

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  6. Tea definitely hits the spot, hot or cold

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  7. I love your jam jar cup thingy!

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  8. I'm not a tea drinker at all I'm afraid but even I might be tempted with that fabulous mug!

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  9. I drink ice tea all day.. i would rather drink that then anything else..

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  10. I love tea and drink various different types throughout the day. I'm not very good at just plain water.

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  11. I am afraid I only like english breakfast tea or pg tips. Wish I like fruit teas, they always smell so nice.

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  12. We drink a lot of sweet tea when out in Florida - rarely make it at home though, maybe we should!

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  13. I love tea too and am addicted to iced lemon tea in the summer. Its the most refreshing thing you can drink. Great post xxxx

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  14. I love iced tea. Fabulous quotes at the end of the post!

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  15. Iced tea is HUGE in North America - I'm not a fan though. I'll stick with my Assam and Earl Grey in the afternoon with a dash of milk thankyou :-)

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    1. That's the great thing about tea. It's so versatile and you can have your way to drink it and love and cherish it. While others drink it in completely different way :)

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  16. This sounds interesting! Im not a fan of any hot drinks either but may have to try this xx

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  17. I'm a huge tea fan, the hot stuff though, not iced tea. All the quotes that you have compiled are great.

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  18. I'm not a tea fan myself but this concoction actually sounds and looks quite lovely! xxx

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  19. I hate tea but there are now so many different flavoured teas x

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  20. I know I don't drink enough. I do love jasmine tea in the evenings though. Love these quotes!

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  21. I have gout in my foot so can't really drink sweet drinks either. Loved all of the quotes in this post.
    Funnily enough despite it being 1:07 am I am about to put the kettle on for a cuppa.
    Yes I know yours is with sparkling water ;-) but I am having a traditional one.
    I did buy some lemons today though as Lemon water really helps with the gout x

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    1. Traditional one is very good too :) I actually stumbled on this thing through try and error. Trying to get rid of the sparkling water's taste, never really liked the stuff. But it's really healthy and with the tea, lemon and stevia all you get is the nice bubbles, lol

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  22. I love iced tea. Perfect with honey and lemon.

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  23. I've never really had iced tea. I love hot tea with a little milk though!

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  24. I adore iced tea, hot tea and flavoured tea!!

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  25. This sounds so refreshing and super delicious to beat the summer heat.

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  26. I was never a big fan of tea, I think it's because my mum and dad drank cups and cups of the stuff when I was younger and I was chief tea maker! I really didn't like making cup after cup of tea and I just never drank it when I got older.
    I've recently been turned on to iced tea since trying to cut down on carbonated drinks and I love how refreshing it is :)

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    1. I've never liked the hot stuff myself either, Michelle. And I really found the sweet tea for the same reason you did. It's just so much healthier than soda.

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