How lucky am I? It was time for another girls day out. So Evonne organised for herself, Leena, Annie and I to spend the day in the village she grew up in. What a delightful day.
Leena, Evonne and Annie in front of Azaleas which grow wild in the forests
This is tea ready to be picked.
Tea growing. What gorgeous countryside.
After a quick lesson from Evonne, the girls set to work.
Above: 1 hours work from 4 women.
Evonne took us to the tea factory in her village. Local people can pick the tea on their land. They bring it to the factory and it will be weighed. They will be paid by weight of the tea they bring in.
Fresh tea laid out to dry.
I learnt that green and black tea are the same product.
Black tea (called red tea in China (Hong Cha)) goes through a fermentation process as in photograph below.
It's great that so many of the implements used are made of bamboo.
White tea is a slightly different plant which is processed in a slightly different way.
Leena and Evonne cooking lunch in the kitchen at Evonne's family home.
This is the original cooking stove. A great big iron wok like shape that is heated by a wooden fire below. You feed the wood in at the back.
What a great lunch we shared.
