Kotagiri Landscape

The view from the balcony of the guesthouse where I stayed in Kotagiri on my recent trip to Tamil Nadu (see Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve and Biodiversity Festival).  A patchwork of tea plantations in different stages of development. Kotagiri has some of the oldest tea plantations in this part of India. The first one was started in 1863 by the daughter of M.D. Cockburn, a Scottish planter and the district collector.  Wonder what was growing here before the Camellia sinensis took over?

Kotagiri Tea Estates

Drove through some beautiful old tea estates yesterday outside of Kotagiri in Tamil Nadu, India. Kotagiri is the home of the Keystone Foundation, the local NGO that invited me here to participate in a workshop on indigenous cultures, biodiversity, and the adaptive management of non-timber forest resources. Kotagiri is also the gateway to the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.

Tea Bricks

An assortment of different tea bricks displayed in the window of a tea shop in Kunming, China. The round ones are made from pu-erh tea; the square embossed one on the bottom is made from powered black tea.  The window display got me to go into the shop, but I spent most of my time inside tasting different delicious oolong teas. I was quite awake when I finally left. [NOTE: The student that took me to this shop purchased a large quantity of tea that she said was for stuffing in your pillow to give you sweet dreams. Nice idea.]