Previously we linked to a NY Times article featuring a unique teahouse in Hangzhou. Well, after a little bit of stumbling around, we happened upon that teahouse in an area known as History Street.
We can offer little in the way of improving upon the extremely beautiful pictures Chang W. Lee took for the NY Times piece. However, the one thing the images did not fully capture—or at least I didn’t grasp prior to seeing it in person—is how much movement is involved in the tea style practiced here. It quite literally is a form of martial arts. I tried taking some pictures using a 2nd-sync flash, hoping to capture more of the movement. With the Canon G6 camera I was using, I had limited success.
Various Taiji Cha poses.
We spent several afternoons in the tea house, and towards the end got them to give us a few demonstrations of all the different poses involved. The video shows more clearly just how much movement is involved.
For the record, the name of the style used at the teahouse is Taiji Cha. Taiji is the well-known martial arts form from China, and cha simply means tea.
Enjoy…
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Sooooo, how did this all come to be? Is it all for show? Or is there some tradition/religious beliefs/story/etc that goes along with it?
oh look, just like me when I pour my tea every morning. And I thought I was so original…
Regrettably, our Mandarin is lacking. In fact, Julie accidentally called an old lady a fish while attempting to say good morning (haven’t got this whole tonal language thing quite yet). As such, we more or less spent our time in the teahouse pantomiming things like “more hot water”. Though, all sarcasm aside, the staff at the teahouse were extremely friendly and, though there was a difficult language barrier, they made every attempt—including a translation tool on one of their laptops—to communicate with us. Nevertheless, we only got a small piece of the puzzle.
What we learned, and what seems to be echoed by the NY Times piece we linked to is this…
In days long past, teahouses were an extremely popular affair in Hangzhou (even today there are more than 700 of them). The teahouses would often become very full at peak times, making it hard for the staff to maneuver around the patrons and tables to fill tea pots with more hot water. The long-spout teapot evolved over time to make filling teapots from a distance possible so they didn’t have to walk through the crowd. The design of the teapot, in a very true sense, is an example of form following function. Over time, the teapots gained a bit of a reputation, and the spouts were made longer and the taiji added for a bit of flair. Eventually, it became it’s own style of serving tea, known as Taiji Cha.
This is, of course, only what we gathered from the NY Times piece and broken conversation with the Taiji Cha staff, so take it for what it’s worth.
so what do they really put in their “tea”...no really, seriously…
Last time I saw someone moving like that was 30 years ago at the Avalon ballroom while the Grateful Dead were playing, and I gotta think they had been drinking their tea as well…
Dad
Longjing (known as Dragon Well), is the most popular tea in the region as it’s grown just outside of Hangzhou. In fact, Longjing tea is the most popular green tea in China. However, they serve all types at the teahouse, including other green teas, oolong, black tea, and pu-erh.
They have a special tea known as Shui Dan Qing, which is a mix of four types of green tea and brewed cold. Very tasty, though I don’t think it will make you dance like you’re at a Dead show, which may be a very good thing…
Hi Kai and Julie, We were all looking and listening together. At the end of the clip, is that Julie laughing? It sounds so much like her. I miss you both. As you know from your hard work and practice, being good enough at anything that you’ve practiced gives you the “flow” which moves our bodies into a dance. These people have obviously practiced and enjoy showing their dance. Lots of fun to watch. One of the most fun posts. Love, Dianne
Dearest Julikens and Kai,
What an interesting teastory! I never discovered anything like that when I was in China. But I did discover congee for breakfast with all sorts of delicacies sprinkled over—most delicious, a 1000-year old egg. Not quite that old, of course, but having real character. The pickled vegetables are great, too.
Julie, your mother actually telephoned me! She was in wonderful spirits, looking forward to meeting you and Kai in Bangkok. It will be a terrific experience for her! She sounded really happy. Says she talks to you more often from China than when you were here.
Trevor is on a roll. Loves his new job. But dear Rags is failing—one of the world’s truly great cats, worthy of the Cats Hall of Fame. All Trevor and I want for Christmas is for Rags to be sitting on the steps outside to welcome us. He knows the duties of a host and fulfills them to perfection. But he must be 25 years old now—a prodigious age. A very sad moment.
My dears, this will be the last you hear of me for awhile—I am off Sunday to Croatia and then Stockholm, back at the end of the month. Possibly I can check your blog in an internet cafe—I’ll try.
A couple of my friends have visited your site and found your accounts most interesting and your photos beautiful. Cindy will be holding the fort, so check in with her when you need to. Meanwhile, take care of yourselve! Don’t forget to find The Wild Swans. If you can read only one book on China, this is the one. Lots of love.
Your Patricia