“There is something in the nature of tea that leads us into a world of quiet contemplation of life.” ― Lin Yutang

As my fifth wedding aniversary rapidly approaches, I cannot help but wonder how my wife is going to better the present she bought me last year.

Last year, as is the custom in the year preceding the fifth, was our fourth wedding anniversary. Since we got married we do try and buy each other gifts that fit in with that list that someone somewhere once created that says that 'this year the gift should be made of this, that year the gift should be made of that, etc...'. On the fourth anniversary, so the list states, the gift should be flower based.

Now, for my part I carried on the tradition I started the year after we got married and, some may say disappointingly predictably, I bought her some jewellery. It was nice jewellery, real flowers encased in glass made into a rather nice necklace. The year before that I bought leather earrings, the year before that a pair of socks...with a bracelet in them (yeah, stretching it I know). But you get the idea.

My wife bought me a teapot and some Whittards Rose Tea.

Now, this wasn't completely from left field. We had visited a tea room in Clitheroe a couple of months previously where I had been extremely taken by the whole experience of getting the big teapot with the strange 'infusion' in it, straining it myself, stirring it with the lovely old spoon with a little bell on the end. Obviously my darling other half had noted this enthusiasm down in her delightful brain, and this led her to purchasing the teapot.

Now, had she known the effect this would have on my life, I am quite certain she would have given me a box of Roses chocolates and some aftershave named after a manly sounding flower, which must exist even if I can't think of it right now. But she didn't, and I am glad. The world of tea drinking is huge, and scary, and inviting, and crackers. Did you know that you don't make all teas with boiling water? I didn't. Did you know that if you do make a tea with boiling water that's not supposed to be made with boiling water, it might taste nice, but it's supposed to be even nicer? I didn't.

So I set out into the unknown, and I will be documenting some of that journey here. I think my next post will be a tea review. Come back and check it out. Ta. Bye now...