Cuppa Tea

 

Tea!

Since tea, and more specifically, the drinking of tea, has become a regular part of my life here in Belfast, I felt it deserved a post.  

I’ve always had an ambiguous relationship with tea.  Growing up in the Southern United States meant sweet tea was served at almost every social occasion.  I can remember numerous church functions where sweet tea and lemonade were the only beverages of choice.  I always opted for the lemonade.  In fact, drinking sweet tea was so prevalent, I almost felt I wasn’t truly “Southern” because I didn’t like it.  Every now and then I would try to drink some, hoping I had changed my mind about it, only to discover I still thought it was disgusting. 

Having been warned beforehand about the vast amounts of tea people drink in Northern Ireland, I was a little apprehensive.  Granted, this was hot tea, not sweet tea, but I still wasn’t looking forward to it.  

So, it was a nice surprise to discover I not only don’t hate hot tea, but I really like it! The best part about drinking tea in Northern Ireland is you aren’t just served tea. There are always (and I mean, always) biscuits(the Northern Irish equivalent of cookies) or traybakes, or some type of sweet served with it.  This fact is actually a point of pride in Northern Ireland.  People have said to me on many different occasions something to the effect of “You don’t get just a cup of tea here, not like England or Scotland…”.  

Tea drinking is such a part of life it has altered the local vocabulary; “cup of tea” has been shortened to “cuppa tea”.  Yes, “cuppa” is a real word; it’s in the dictionary. There’s even an application for the iPhone called the iCuppa to time your tea while it steeps.

There is something really nice about a hot cup of tea on a cold, rainy day (most days in Belfast) that just isn’t the same as any other drink.

Tea, apparently, is so fantastic it has inspired some super ridiculous quotations. I leave you with several of those:

1) Tea does our fancy aid,
    Repress those vapours which the head invade
    And keeps that palace of the soul serene.
   ~Edmund Waller, “Of Tea”

Tea affects the soul? Who knew?

2) Tea, although an Oriental
    Is a gentleman at least;
    Cocoa is a cad and coward,
    Cocoa is a vulgar beast.
   ~G.K. Chesterton, “The Song of Right and Wrong”

What does G.K. Chesterton have against hot chocolate?

3)  Tea! thou soft, thou sober, sage, and venerable liquid,… thou female tongue-running, smile-smoothing, heart-opening, wind-tippling cordial, to whose glorious insipidity I owe the happiest moment of my life, let me fall prostrate. ~Colley Cibber, Lady’s Last Stake

…huh?!

 4)  And, my personal favorite:

The first sip of tea is the always the best… you cringe as it burns the back of your throat, knowing you just had the hottest carpe-diem portion. ~Terri Guillemets