Tea Ceremony to be held at Hamarikyu Gardens

Oh my diligent tea students, I am feeling quite nostalgic as I sip my organic oolong tea. The strong aroma does take me back to my younger days, and thought I continue to feel young due to the almost magical effects of tea. But that’s not what I am talking about. You see, coming up in Japan, some tea houses are going to hold what cold be the largest tea ceremony ever.

On October 25 and 26, in Hamarikyu Gardens in the Chuo Ward will play host to a ceremony that will be celebrated by something like 8,000 people. 8,000 people will be taking tea, being a part of the Tokyo Grand Tea Ceremony. This is quite an amazing thing, tea students. I should not have to tell you that.

The Hamarikyu Gardens are quite beautiful, so it will be quite a spectacle. But the most incredible thing is that there will be instructions in English as well, and events which will allow them to learn the details and history of tea, and even participate in the ceremony. There will be a 40 minute ceremony, during which matcha tea, the ceremonial tea will be served, along with some sweets to complement the somewhat bitter taste of the matcha, and rumor has it that there may even be a ceremonial geisha dance. It sounds truly delightful, and gives people who do not know much about the long history of tea and the delicate beauty of the traditional ceremony to learn much, and embrace tea as you and I do. It sounds quite remarkable.

Of course, I shall be here, in my Tea Studio, meditating. But if you should be in the area, it sounds like something a true tea student and seeker of the essence of Tea should not miss.

Tags: aging, Current Events, Green Tea, Health, history, Informational, Matcha, Matcha Tea, tea ceremony

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 19th, 2008 at 9:12 pm and is filed under Green Tea, Health, Informational, Oolong Tea, Tea in Pop Culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.