Xiim Attaya (Making Tea)

This morning, I'd planned on a day spent chilling at home. Then Djibi showed up at my house saying we could go to the beach and make attaya. It seemed quiet enough, so we went.

He loves Adele, and sang "Someone Like You" as we walked over. He was surprised when I said I didn't like Rihanna, but he said he appreciated that, as she's gotten so vulgar these days. We spent a lot of time chatting, as making attaya is a lengthy process. He loves music and said that if he could track down a guitar, he'd love for me to teach him some chords. It's also interesting, because his grandmother is Catholic and he went to Catholic schools when he was younger. He loves adventuring, and told me some wild stories.

Djibi is also the first young Senegalese man with whom I have been honest when asked if I had a boyfriend. I wanted to be honest with him because he has been so genuinely kind and welcoming, and I feel as though he actually respects me. We talked about relationships and he and I agreed it's important to take things seriously - not for a few weeks or months, but for the long haul. When he asked me why I didn't have a boyfriend, I said it was because I have too many adventures I want to have on my own first, and he said that I had good reasoning.

Then, he made me try to xiim attaya, using a rock as a plate on which to put the glasses. It was tricky with the wind, and I did not do a very good job, though he humored me. I WILL figure it out one day. Attaya, he told me, is a big part of teranga - Senegalese hospitality. It is less about the actual tea than the time spent making it with others. Nit nitay garabam, remember? (A person is another person's remedy).

The attaya glasses. Small, but this tea is loaded with caffeine and sugar. Angeline's brother says the tea we drink in America is for old people. Also, it's traditionally served in 3 rounds: slightly bitter, minty, and incredibly sweet.

If you look closely, you can see the mint just added to the pot, as the sugar gets dumped in.

This is the "xiim" part. I found that rock, which was as helpful as I was with the xiim.

Attaya on the rocks. How perfect ;)

And Djibi, the master of teranga

Here's some tea quotes for you:

You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.
C.S. Lewis

What would the world do without tea?-- how did it exist? I am glad I was not born before tea
Sir Sidney Smith (1771-1845)

There is no trouble so great or grave that cannot be much diminished by a nice cup of tea

Bernard-Paul Heroux

Here, we drink three cups of tea to do business; the first you are a stranger, the second you becmoe a friend, and the third, you join our family, and for our family we are prepared to do anything-even die.

Haji Ali, Korphe Village Chief, Karakoram Mountains, Pakistan
Three Cups of Tea Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

Drink your tea slowly and reverently,
as if it is the axis on which the world
earth revolves - slowly, evenly,
without rushing toward the future.
Thich Nat Hahn

There is a subtle charm in the taste of tea which makes it irresistible and capable of idealism. Western humorists were not slow to mingle the fragrance of their thoughts with its aroma. It has not the arrogance of wine, the self-consciousness of coffee, nor the simpering innocence of cocoa.
Kakuzo Okakura

If man has no tea in him, he is incapable of understanding truth and beauty.

Japanese Proverb

Don't hurry. When making tea you have only time. Let tea be a refuge, a genuine change of pace. Brewing your tea is part of drinking it and drinking is part of your life. Let the tea gently stimulate you to reflect on how the smallest part touches and is touched by the infinite.
Joel, David, and Karl Shapira