THE ROUTES OF TEA – THE BEVERAGE THAT CHANGED THE WORLD

Millions of people around the world love to drink tea, but few are aware of its long, turbulent, and colorful history – one filled with intrigues, adventures, losses and gains, wars and revolutions, religious and creative enthusiasm, as well as social changes. This drink and commodity, whose magical properties remained known only to the Chinese for centuries, has captivated not only the Asian continent but the entire world. Tea has traveled with merchants and travelers, monks and scholars. Its history is the history of humanity. It has been used as medicine, during meditation, as currency, and even as a bribe to obtain a higher position. Tea has been the cause of wars and global conflicts, as well as the centerpiece of celebrations, family gatherings, and upper-class events. It has woven itself into our lives and changed them in ways no other beverage has, connecting farmers and monks, emperors and peasants, as well as nations from different continents.