India

When travelling by train in India, you will hear the lively cries of "garam chai! garam chai!" each time the train stops at a station. The phrase means "hot tea!" and the scene ofvendors calling out and selling hot tea to the train passengers is one of the poetic charms of rail travel in India. India is the world's largest producer of tea and the world's largest consumer. For the people of India, tea is an integral aspect of everyday life. Popular Indian teas such as Darjeeling and Assam have retained the name of the place where they were first produced to become familiar brands enjoyed around the world. Masala tea is another popular type of tea in India. Masala is a mixture of spices, and the spices are added to the tea according to taste. Cardamom and cinnamon are common ingredients, while ginger is often used in the case of a sore throat. In the home, following established procedures to make a good cup of tea is considered very important. It is said that a person's upbringing and personality are revealed by the way he or she makes tea, and that a man should determine if a woman would make a suitable wife by observing the way she prepares tea. In India, the expression of endearment "you are my cup of tea" is also quite commonly used.