The steep path

It was bound to happen sooner or later. I am in a new place, away from home, exposed to new things. I consider myself to be sufficiently open-minded. In my time here I will try new things, maybe change a couple ideas. But there are some occasions where I need to put my foot down and hold fast to my convictions.

On Friday just before lunch, the 8th graders invited me to their class, for what I can only assume was a recruitment event targeting yours truly. They had picked some leaves that very morning from green tea plants on the school’s property. I appreciated their inclusion of me to the affair, but I was privy to their agenda.

I played along. The process from leaf to tea was already underway, but I had not missed much. For about an hour they rotate the leaves between a bowl and a skillet. In the bowl, the leaves are rolled lightly between the hands, making them more compact. Dumped on a paper towel on a low set skillet, the leaves are continuously shuffled with chopsticks. This is to dry the leaves.

I asked questions to learn more about the process, as our method did not seem the most efficient – a few people working for an hour to produce 100g of tea. Ikawa is after all, a big tea region. From what I could understand, there are big machines that both heat and shake the leaves. Seems elaborate for the local farmers, but I will have to look a little further.


After the work was done, the students heated some water and steeped our fresh tea. It was good. I think I enjoyed it more having just seen it made, and being a part of the process. And kudos to the students for the role reversal. It was fun having them give me the lesson.

Though for such a great attempt it was fruitless. No one has yet confessed, but I am well aware of the nation wide conspiracy to derail my coffee love. A personal message: “Japan, I know what you are up to, and you have your work cut out for you. Well you can not stop my love of coffee, you can do your best to build my like of tea.”