Day 2: Tea Country (part 2)

We did not even took a nap after arriving at The Hill Club. After check-in, Ganda immediately asked if we can have lunch and if they serve "pork"??? It was 3 orders of Grilled Porkchop --- pare-pareho taste namin talaga ano! hahaha
A rest is definitely in order, we need to take a nap before going anywhere kasi nilalamig at pagod na pagod na ang mga mujer! But I was still egging them on that we have a lot of things to do as per itinerary (u know me and my itineraries! hehe) so we compromised and decided to go to the Tea plantation after 3pm.

While waiting for our car to arrive....picture muna! we just love our hotel!!!!!

Pedro Tea Estate

Yes, I know.....ang rich talaga ng mga ka-tribo ni Langga sa Sri Lanka! Lol...Aside from being the largest tea grower in the Nuwara Eliya district (it is just 3kms away from the main square, the others are at least 30 - 40 minutes away from town), it is also one of the oldest in the country. It was established around 1885 (amazing huh?) and although the factory is now modernised, there are still some 19th-century machinery existing in the factory (though not anymore in use but displayed and run only for say, 30 minutes demo!).

Tea is the most important export of Sri Lanka and is widely recognized as the symbol of the country, oh well, before the infamous Tamil Tigers supplanted it in the news. Tea buyers come from all over the world to check the different teas on offer at the Tea Auction. One thing though that depresses me whenever I think of the delicious green tea that I always have are the huddled bodies of the tea-pickers who goes out in the cold weather to pick tea leaves daily and carry it in their backs.

We were given a tour of the factory and a lesson in tea production (hence the green apron outfits!). Langga was very attentive kasi balak yata i-memorize ang....Pekoe, BOP, FBOP, at ano pa yun???? Lol...

We couldn't resist going down to the plantation fields....it was so crazy! So unbelievably beautiful!

Afterwards, we went back to the Tasting Centre for a cuppa of hot tea. Heavenly! Just the aroma is so purely delicious!

On our way back to town, we passed by the calm waters of Gregory Lake. Actually, I wanted to go boating in the lake but I was vetoed by Ganda & Langga into going to the market coz they want to buy a sweater! Bukas na lang daw ang lake! Ok sya.... off we went to the market! My God, the sweaters are so uber-cheap! I got a Gap (albeit a rip-off) sweater for only 400 LKR which is about U$4 only....di vash!!!

Time to head back to our hotel....fog is coming in.....it is starting to really get cold....