Recently, my husband and I hosted 2 guests from Kobe, Japan. There were 5 in the GSE (Group Study Exchange ) through the Rotary International programme.
AKO Satoshi , the team leader and his team member, MATSUKOE Koji were our guests whilst the other 3 were hosted by 3 other fellow Rotarians of our club.
On the 4th and last day before they were handed over to another host in the Klang Valley, Satoshi kindly held a matcha tea demo ceremony in our dining area. Normally he conducts the ceremony a few times a year and he wears a kimono doing it.
We were curious as he went through the steps of preparation, serving and drinking matcha, a fine powder green tea.
Here are a few photos of our induction into the method. Also, he brought me a 3 piece gift set - whisk(chasen), bowl (chawan), and spoon (chashaku) and a tea cloth to wipe the bowl and a tea caddy (natsume) which I shall use and go through the steps again. There's always my hubby to fill in the details should I forget , as he did it before the master!
I was busy with the guests for their 4 day stay. Our homes were the first to kick start their 6 week stay in Malaysia. A couple of mornings they were up at 6 to fill in a full day's programme. Gamely they enjoyed our local cuisine. Before we said goodbye to them, I booked a Indian vegetarian meal at Annalakshmi and then we proceeded to watch a children's musical , BitesOfDelights in the Temple of Fine Arts auditorium.They soaked it all in, food and performance.
We made new friends and hope they enjoyed their stay. Sayonara, to our Kobe guests.
AKO Satoshi , the team leader and his team member, MATSUKOE Koji were our guests whilst the other 3 were hosted by 3 other fellow Rotarians of our club.
On the 4th and last day before they were handed over to another host in the Klang Valley, Satoshi kindly held a matcha tea demo ceremony in our dining area. Normally he conducts the ceremony a few times a year and he wears a kimono doing it.
We were curious as he went through the steps of preparation, serving and drinking matcha, a fine powder green tea.
Here are a few photos of our induction into the method. Also, he brought me a 3 piece gift set - whisk(chasen), bowl (chawan), and spoon (chashaku) and a tea cloth to wipe the bowl and a tea caddy (natsume) which I shall use and go through the steps again. There's always my hubby to fill in the details should I forget , as he did it before the master!
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| Getting ready |
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| Whisk, spoon and a piece of cloth which was used to clean the bowl. |
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| Matcha being scooped from the container. 3 scoops per person |
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| Pouring hot water from the scoop into the bowl of tea powder |
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| Brisk whisking of the tea powder in the hot water to mix it evenly. |
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| Easy does it! Hubby positioning the bamboo scoop . |
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| Methinks the smile is an approval on hearing the audible slurp at the 3rd and last sip of the tea:) |
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| Fellow GSE member, Koji, taking his turn to enjoy a helping of matcha |
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| My maid was also asked to join in this introduction to Japanese culture. |
I was busy with the guests for their 4 day stay. Our homes were the first to kick start their 6 week stay in Malaysia. A couple of mornings they were up at 6 to fill in a full day's programme. Gamely they enjoyed our local cuisine. Before we said goodbye to them, I booked a Indian vegetarian meal at Annalakshmi and then we proceeded to watch a children's musical , BitesOfDelights in the Temple of Fine Arts auditorium.They soaked it all in, food and performance.
We made new friends and hope they enjoyed their stay. Sayonara, to our Kobe guests.
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| The Kobe team were introduced to the club members It coincided with the DG's visit, induction of Mexes as a new member and the Installation of Rotactors from Taylor's Uni. They entertained us and Koji sang the Negara Ku beautifully:) |
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| Koji and Satoshi at Kraftangan, Jalan Conlay |
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| At En Lazim's batek colony |
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| One of the shops at our Orchid Garden |
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| With Tan Sri Aziz, a special visit was arranged by hubby to learn more about our legal systems. Satoshi is a judicial scrivener. Koji is an architect and involved in urban town planning approvals. |
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| Wowed by the iconic Twin Towers, at night |
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| The team visited DBKL HQ to learn more about DBKL's structural plan etc. Among the GSE members are a fireman and public officials. |
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| Viewing the monitors, looking and listening to staff on how traffic is monitored in the city |
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| A sampling of Malaysian dishes after the DBKL visit. |
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| Yellow rambutans from our tree in the garden. Taste- yummy! |
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| HELP!! |
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| Thoroughly enjoyed the musical which brought to an end an enjoyable hosting of our guests from Kobe. Perhaps we'll meet again one day... |
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very interesting
ReplyDeleteI love matcha and would love to experience a Japanese tea ceremony one day. Your guests sure had a good time! You and Ravi are such good hosts! Your maid didn't seem too impressed with the tea, though! I wish I had gone for Bites of Delight. My friend's 9-year-old son was one of the performers.
ReplyDeleteWas just thinking where can I get to buy the bamboo scoop the other day haha. Your nihonjin friends don't like our thorny fruit? haha
ReplyDeleteWow what an interesting and wonderful time. The ceremony is interesting, he made it so proper. The picture at the craft centre was cute, the towers were awesome. I'm sure they were sad to leave. Maybe you'll meet again.
ReplyDelete