a tea ceremony & that time we wore kimonos

October 22, 2010
washing hands before entering the tea house
Before visiting the Hakone Japanese Tea Gardens, I had never seen a traditional tea ceremony. Everything was really simple and elegant. As you enter the tea house garden, you forget your outside worries and clear your mind. You clean your hands with fresh water from the bamboo pipe, take off your shoes and sit on the mats in the tea house.

There were only six of us, so two people we didn't know joined us. They turned out to be our tea-lady's husband and son, coming to see her work for the first time. They were so cute! Her husband had a little camcorder and her son just made the sweetest little faces as he watched his mama.

The tea is reallllllllly bitter. Before you drink any, they give you sweets to have sugar residue in your mouth, but it doesn't help all that much. Although I'll need a lot of time to get used this kind of tea, the tradition is really beautiful.
a sweet little boy watching his mama
so elegent
green tea
we got to wear kimonos!
kimonos
these were really fun to wear
Oh yeah... and then we got to wear kimonos!

8 comments:

  1. That looks like so much fun! I just read memoirs of a geisha this summer so I think it would be so neat to go to a tea house!

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  2. wow!! that is so cool. it must be amazing to be able to see a tradition like that.

    and it sounds really relaxing and calming. thanks for sharing!

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  3. you look so pretty! and how fun that must have been :D

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  4. I also read memoirs of a geisha and loved it. What an amazing experience. So great that you happen to be there when her son and husband were there. I'm sure she wanted to put her best forward. Japanese gardens are so serene.

    I shared you Butternut Squash Risotto recipe on my blog with a link back to your blog.

    Have a fantastic weekend!

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  5. I love this! Wish I could of gone, looks so neat! Love your blog. x

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  6. Well oh my goodness, you are just lovely. I'm so happy you found my blog because I adore yours, it's the sweetest thing. Good luck with your tough quarter too! Don't go too study crazy and get cabin fever (seriously, this is coming from current experience...) Can't wait to read more. xoxo

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