94 The Japan Trip 6 (2/2)

When they were at the shrines, Xiu Ling and Joann bought Omamori or lucky talismans that one could buy from Japanese temples or shrines. Joann bought one for good health and another one for good fortune in business for Xu Jing. She also noticed Xiu Ling purchase an Omamori for romance and love. Joann found this to be quite interesting and she made a mental note of it.

On the way back to the hotel, Xiu Ling and Joann stopped at a dessert shop to search for a Japanese pastry that had recently taken over the world by storm, the castella or Kasutera in the Japanese vernacular.

Even though the cake was brought to Japan by Portuguese merchants in the sixteenth century, it had become a Japanese specialty.

The traditional Japanese treat was an old-fashioned sponge cake that was made using only 4 ingredients, eggs, sugar, flour and honey. Xiu Ling and Joann bought some to accompany their dinner that night. It would be their dessert.

However, when the ladies arrived at their hotel that night, they were worn and beat. Nevertheless, it was a wonderful kind of tired, not dissimilar to how one would feel after a long and hard rewarding day of work.

They shared a hasty dinner, put their purchases away and returned to their bedrooms to rest.

…

Morning came soon after. Xiu Ling and Joann skipped breakfast because they had a full day ahead, their schedule was packed.

Like how travelers visiting European countries would pay a special visit to the wineries, Xiu Ling and Joann decided to go on a trip to have a better understanding of the nation's most iconic beverage, tea.

The hotel provided them with the transport to the nearest tea plantation and they had a packed breakfast inside the car.

Away from the city, the air at the plantation smelled fresher and it carried with it a hint of tea, not the one that was roasted but the smell of tea leaves that were fresh.

Rows and rows of tea bushes lined the hill and the uniformity of the green lines was a spectacle to behold. Morning dew that were still stuck to the leaves reflected the ray of the rising sun and it felt like they were standing amidst a shimmering green sea.

Xiu Ling saw there were women among the rows of tea bushes harvesting leaves and she asked the guide whether they could give that experience a try. Their guide was glad to oblige.

Even though Joann was not really in the mood for manual labor, she went along with it. She also believed they would not be overworked in a try-it-for-yourself experience.

Xiu Ling and Joann followed the guide to the changing room and they were handed each a pair of tea picker's outfit.