India Log book...

Few days ago I wrote about deputy chairman planning commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia declaring tea as a national drink of India . It is time to take a look at some interesting facts about Indian tea. Readers of this post can include some more facts in the comment box. 1. The most common word for tea in India is 'Chai' (चाय) or 'Cha' (चा). Like many words in Indian dictionary Chai has too come from Persian language which is derived from Chinese Mandarin Language. So Many people who think Chai is an India word or never had payed attention about this fact that it is actually a Persian word where tea is known as 'Chay'. 2. Most commonly used spices for masala tea are ginger, cardamom, cloves, fennel and basil leafs. 3. Except southern India where coffee is very popular rest of India enjoys variety of spice tea. 4. India used to be largest producer of tea few years ago. Now China has taken number one position. China and India produce more than half of t...

I don't remember clearly when I started morning tea and when   tea   became a habit in my life. Most of us do not remember this fact but one thing they are sure about is they can't live without their first cup of tea in the morning. My taste for good tea has grown gradually over the years. I started with   Masala (spice) chai (tea)    and enjoyed every bit of it. In fact, I am still enjoying it as my first cup of tea in the morning. In 1987 I first saw tea plantation and processing unit in   Darjeeling ,   West Bengal   with my parents. My father is very fond of leaf tea and since I was always keen to know how things happen, my father explained everything about it. I was excited to see the plantation and processing. It was a new type of cultivation for me. I don't remember the name of the tea estate but it was beautiful and filled with small green leafy plants, women laborers were plucking tea leaves and throwing them in the...