Cultural Highlights

The 13th International Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony and Tea Culture Festival

Care for a cuppa? Well, you've come to the right place. Wherever you go on this green island, there seems to be a place or two within easy sight that serves up the golden brew. Growing tea is a big business here, and the fragrance of Taiwan leaves are known and cherished by knowledgeable tea drinkers around the globe. The renowned“tea ceremony” is long-established and much savored here, with its fastidiousness about ritual, brewing technique, utensils used, character of each type of leaf and its season, and with the advent of this summer season, you are hereby cordially invited to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall for some good brew, fine fragrance, and equally fine talk.

Taiwan is not only a key world producer of quality tea leaves, but also an important place in the world of tea culture. In 1989, the Lu-Yu Tea Culture Institute established Taipei's Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony , open to all comers regardless of nationality, race, or religion. The point of the initiative was simple— enjoying tea. Its brewing, its presentation etiquette, and its tasting,each embodying the harmonious spirit of tea arts, and modern Taiwan concepts concerning tea are being brought to the ceremony. The Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony is now an international event, with editions staged in Taiwan, China, Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, and as far as the United States.

The Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony—Preserving Distinction, Promoting Culture

The event in each country follows that land's own national character, aesthetics, philosophical outlook, and traditional crafts, which together engender pleasingly distinctive tea art cultures. The Japanese, for example, inherited their tea culture from the literati of China's Song Dynasty, bringing the tea ceremony etiquette and the quest for the ultimate in refinement out from the temple and into the lives of commoners. Tea drinking became a cultural activity that crossed boundaries of social status. The master of the household prepares tea and dedicated snack foods to entertain guests, with both host and guests following highly ritualized etiquette and procedures.

The practice of sitting down for tea also has a long history in Korea, where there are many forms of traditional tea, with up to hundreds of different ingredient used. These include different types of grain such as barley and corn, medicinal herbs, and fruits. In recent years in the US, in large part because of the Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony promotion, there has been a surge of interest in tea arts and the meditative joys brought in the act of brewing. In China, the tea ceremony is steeped in Confucian thoughts, emphasizing the concept of the beauty of the mean via harmonious reconciliation of the bitter, sweet,and sour. The Confucian tradition is also manifested in the emphasis on courteous hospitality toward guests,especially elders, and on a presentation of modesty and amiability while drinking.

This year will see the 13th different International Wu-Wo Tea Ceremony and Tea Culture Festival , which is held every two years in different places. Taiwan was chosen as this year's host by the organizer in order to celebrate the centenary of the Republic of China, and the event will be spread over 6 days, from May 27 to June 1, letting people from around the world get an intimate look at this island's wonderful teas and its appealing tea culture.

The Tea Party—Fulfilling Your Taste and Artistic Desires

The event will be divided into“active”and “quiet”sections. In the active component will be attractions such as the“Party of A Thousand Big Tea Party,”“Essay Presentations,”and“Tea Ceremony Performances”demonstrating the different approaches taken by peoples around the world.Experts from near and far will be present for the teavaganza,including from Japan, Korea, mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia, United States, Italy, and France, with the essence of their national cultures demonstrated in the tea ceremonies. In the quiet component, the focus will be on tea-related poetry, calligraphy, tea utensils, tea setting placement, etc.

On each day of the event, there will be times for special brewings of tea by masters of the art, which will then be presented to visitors. Lovers of all things tea! There is only one place for you to be at this time this summer—at this international celebration with an army
of like-minded new friends.

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• Updated: 2011/6/24 13:56


• Source: Taipei City Government