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| English: Masala Chai, Masala Tea, Spice Tea (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Here in India, people love tea or chai as it is referred to. I know a lot of people who
drink more of the stuff than water. There are people who drink it from glasses, cups, earthenware mugs, and even bowls. There are those who drink it with special masala (hence, masala chai), with ginger, with mint, with cinnamon, or even with salt!
In our home though, only Dad and I drink
tea and we do so twice a day -- at breakfast and at 4 p.m. which is our tea
time. Believe it or not, we can tell when it is 4 p.m. even without looking at
the clock – our canine babies (Jyoti & Lucky) will bug us like crazy at
exactly 4. They want their share of biscuits… J
At home, we like tea with milk, though I know a lot of
people who would like to enjoy a cuppa without milk. Even when I was growing up
in the Philippines (where I was born), we would have tea or chai every morning
at breakfast. There, we had to rely on tea bags unlike here in India where we
can get the tea leaves without the baggy J
There are so many different varieties of tea that it tends
to surprise a lot of people. I am no expert on tea but I am able to appreciate
subtle changes in taste depending on the variety of tea leaves. Though tea is a
great drink, for people like my Dad who have been asked by their doctors to
minimize the intake of caffeine, regular tea is not such a good idea. Which is
why Dad is trying out decaf tea.
What is so special about decaf tea? Well, it is tea with the
caffeine removed. The thing is, it is not so easy to find especially where we
live. Decaf coffee is somewhat easier to get. But, thankfully, there are a lot
of online stores that offer decaf tea.
No matter whether you enjoy tea with or without milk, plain
or flavored, green or black, with ginger or with cardamom, decaf or with the
caf (hehehe), it is always a nice drink to enjoy at any time of day.
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
