Old tea making equipment has been left here in the fortress. Shown here are the wooden roller for shaping, the basket that they suspend in the air with the pole in the middle for rocking the leaves, and the charcoal pit where the wok is placed for firing the tea. Mr. Yan says in this village, the custom is that the tea master has to place an egg under each armpits when he tosses the leaves on the wok, which meant his arms must move fast, light, and in small circular motions. If the eggs fall off the armpits, that meant the motion was wrong and the leaves were charred. How I wish I could train our bartenders the same way at Teance! More seriously, how I wish I could see this in action.
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