Monday 7 March 2011

tasting of the flask: carnival edition

It's been mostly a bust tea-wise in Cologne. It's not because there's anything wrong with tea drinking here (that I know of). Instead, it's because Carnival, or as they spell it Karneval, was going on. Many shops were closed, and some even boarded up their show windows. It really looked like the preparations for a hurricane.

So, this whole trip was another example of how a tea lover should be prepared to travel. Almost always rent a flat when it's possible. Making tea in a hotel room is certainly possible, but if there is a kettle, it's normally tiny. So in that scenario, I'd have had to carry my own. Nothing wrong with that, but if you rent a place, a kettle is normally included.

The train ride from Munich to Cologne was a perfect 2-flask event. By the time we arrived, they were empty and I quickly brewed another pot for exploring the city. That night we happened upon the Geisterzug (ghost parade), which I'll talk about more on the travel blog (Lahikmajoe in Bayern), but the nice thing was that the night got colder and colder while I was nice and toasty with my tea.

In the past, I would've trudged from cafe to cafe getting cup after cup of poor quality tea (or coffee if they had no tea). Under the circumstances, it could not have been a better tea drinking experience. I did mention on twiitter the tea smelling of the flask but tasting really good, and someone answered that they hate it when tea tastes like that.

It doesn't taste like the thermos. It can sometimes smell a bit like the metal, but the taste is unadulterated. Others have said that tea is best enjoyed at home in the comfort of one's home. I completely understand that this is the ideal. But I intend to keep perfecting the best methods of travelling with my tea.

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