Touristea!

Have you ever had tea and then carefully examined the make, material and design of the cup, and also experienced the tactile sensation of holding it with utmost care as if it were alive and looking back at you? That's a tea ceremony, Japanese style.  

Missing the Japanese tea ceremony experience during my two trips to Japan has taught me that planning activities and experiences before booking flight tickets is very important.

Otherwise going to Japan in non-cherry blossom seasons is great but somehow lacking. Sometimes you gotta go for touristy things.

Seeing one’s own city and surrounding areas like a tourist helps jolt out of monotony.

One need not go to Japan to experience its uniquely meditative tea ceremony. It’s available to experience right here in the Bay Area at Hakone Gardens. With its mindful process that is deeply connected to nature and respectful of every living and non-living thing, the tea ceremony was all about bringing the world to a standstill in the cup and ensuing three sips. Nothing else matters in those moments. Tea-sipping equals worshipping.

You can’t come to the Bay Area this time of the year and not fall in love with the burst of roses all around. The San Jose Municipal Rose garden is a must-visit place for flower lovers and also for those who never stop to smell the roses, just because they are everywhere. Here, people were literally stopping and smelling the many varieties and colors of roses, that is after they got their breath back. It was breathtaking.

I pretended to be in Thailand while trying my first cooking class. All the smells of spring vegetable green curry, Jasmine rice, fried shrimp with sweet sauce, and chicken pad thai were enough to transport me to a distant land. With pre-chopped vegetables, measured ingredients, the class made it look like cooking was a piece of cake. Ask all those struggling with the eternal question, “What to cook?” and then end up with a door delivery.

I played pretend-like-a-tourist in my own county, if not the country. And the best part was phones were not needed at these places. Which phone can truly capture the touch, sights, fragrances, tastes, and smells? I tried anyways.