Why drink green tea?

Korea, Japan, and China have a green tea culture. Korean green tea is soft. The leaves are smaller, milder, and the movements by in the tea ceremony are soft. The right hand represents positive energy, and the left hand negative energy. Thus the woman covers her left (negative) with her right hand... and the man does the opposite. Each hides their thumbs. We bow.

The tools are laid out before us. A washing bowl, three cups, three wooden saucers, the tea pot contraption, the green tea ceramic piece, the wooden spoon, the top holder, a white finely made cotton cloth, and a large silk fabric red on one side blue the other that can cover the little tea table. We cover the tea table with the red side up to protect everything from bad spirits and energy. (Like the Korean flag, everything is in balance).

We poor hot water into one of the dishes, and softly into each of the others. We are cleaning. We poor this out into a ceramic basin to the side of our tea table. Then we carefully wipe the cups, (hanna, duel, say, nei) Again (turn, wipe, turn, wipe).

Ready. Green tea jar top comes off, and onto the top holder (everything has a place.. everyone has a place). 2 small wooden spoonfuls, or was it three. Then the hot water. Now we prepare the tea cups. Using one hand, but not the other. Fingers belonging in certain positions, and gestures choreographed. My partner is a 7 year old boy. He is doing most the work as his mom clicks photos and keeps saying let the foreign teacher... Moms.

We finally get to drink at some point. And we drink. Tastes soft. Now the Tea Ceremony Master tells us how we should drink. Much gets lost in translation. But the first sip is to be slow. The second sip is to grasp the taste. One's face looking in a certain manner that says, "ahhh wonderful, and I reflect on my life as I've never tasted tea quite so good as this." Or that's what I got. And the third is hardcore one-shot. Maybe not her words exactly.

Later we talk to Christina. She explains that a long time ago the legislative elite drank tea together... particularly when somebody came to visit your home. It was a way to show hospitality (hospitality being very, very, very important). It was also a way to sit face to face with people of different ages (maybe classes). As one does not drink alcohol facing somebody of higher position, or greater age than oneself.

So the 7 year old and I drank our tea face to face. He couldn't do that if he was drinking soju.