Ataya Party

On Friday after school a couple of our friends, Bakary and Almamo, came over for an "Ataya Party". Ataya is a green tea from China that EVERYONE here drinks. The label says "Special Gunpowder" but they don't think there is actual gunpowder in it. Of course the label is in Chinese so it could be anything. It's really strong and they add a ton of sugar plus "nana" leaves which smell like spearmint to me. They boil the water in a little kettle on a small coal oven outside. After the leaves are added and it has time to brew, they pour it back and forth between 2 small cups until it gets frothy on top. They have to pour it like 50 times. It's weird. They only use 2 small cups, about the size of shot glasses, and you pass it around until it's gone. Once you drink it they add more water to the kettle and start over again. It has to be brewed 3 times and it just keep getting better and better. The whole process took almost 3 hours! Great time for socializing.