Taiwan: Alishan

Buddhist nun serving tea

We've just returned from four days on the Alishan mountain and at Sun Moon lake, both important tea growing areas in Taiwan. I'll focus first on Alishan. The region is so beautiful!  We were welcomed by the tea farmer like family and stayed at the tea farm. Tea, tea and more tea!

Time for Wu-Wo, too. I'm learning of the concept of "affinity" - and under such, we spontaneously met a group of Buddhist nuns while doing Wu-Wo tea beside a beautiful rock. They invited  us to have tea at their temple.  (Which we did). Beautiful gardens at the temple and ironically, a treasure trove of Taiwanese crackers and cookies.

Witnessing the picking and making of tea is particularly exciting for me. We followed the lifecycle of tea from  picking to processing to packaging. The tea at this farm for this season was picked in four days and we got to see the heart of the alchemy to turn it from picked leaf to dry tea.  This included getting up at midnight to witness "killing the green" - stopping the oxidation with heat. We tasted teas that were finished just hours prior. Majestic views, wonderful people and fragrant, luscious tea. My heart is full of gratitude!

Photos (click to enlarge):  view of Alishan mountains, tea fields and village; grandma and Granddaughter making tea; Wu-Wo; tea withering; "killing the green" to stop the oxidation (using heat tubes); Buddhist nun making tea