Dallmayr and McDonalds tea in Vienna Austria

              

 Traveling home, I must admit seemed to take a long time.  The traveling was easy and uneventful- it was just long. Thursday, I left for the Erbil airport at 1:30pm, traveled on a 4-hour flight to Vienna Austria and had to spend the night there.

When I booked the ticket months ago, I thought I was getting into Vienna at 7am and I would have until 10pm to travel around the city.  But I was wrong. I got in at 7pm and left at 10am the next morning.  That was okay, I was tired and happy to just get a hotel and spend the night.  And even happier that my luggage was safely under the plane, and I did not have to lug it around the city with me.

  I found an inexpensive hotel ($43 US) in Vienna, grabbed a free breakfast and traveled back to the airport.  I then flew 9 hours from Austria to Newark and an hour from Newark to Cleveland and I did not get home to my house until around 8pm Friday night.

Thursday night I knew I had a short window to make the bus to my hotel.  I looked at several options online.  One option took me right to the hotel, the other options meant changing subway lines or trains. I was praying I would make the bus Thursday night, and I did.  It was a $10 round trip ticket. A great way to travel!  And the bus dropped me off right at my hotel, Lenas Donau.

Nothing fancy, but it was clean and had what I needed. 

Friday morning, I was excited to have my free breakfast...with lots of bread.  This is the last bread I will be eating for a long time!  I can eat gluten anywhere but the US.  

I did enjoy the croissants with some tea.  Okay, a couple cups of tea.  And yes, I had four croissants, but they were small.  The first two I did with meat and cheese made them into sandwiches.  The second two I had with butter and jam.    I miss bread, lol!

Dallmayr tea: discover it online now | Dallmayr

Dallmayr is a German company that has been in business for over 300 years (coffee) and 130 years in the tea business. They have over 120 tea varieties. 

These are the two varieties I tried.

Alpine Herbs Tea- Fennel (21 %), rosehips (19 %), peppermint (18 %), apple pieces, aniseed, blackberry leaves (6 %), lemon verbena, sage (2 %), thyme

Fruits of the Forest Tea- Hibiscus blossom, apple pieces (28 %), blackberry leaves, flavoring, acidifier: citric acid, blackcurrant fibers, rosehip peel, strawberry fibers, blackberry fibers

Fruits of the Forest was my favorite of the two teas I tried.  I liked them so much that I took a few extra from the restaurant to enjoy at home.  I shared one with my mom and she loved it too.  She liked it so much she looked to see how much the tea was on Amazon. I plan on checking the website for US shipping to see if it is cheaper and maybe mom will get some for her birthday.  Or maybe they will see this post and send her some tea, lol.

The hotel's restaurant was really cute.  I loved the blue overhead lights.

I needed to catch my bus at 7:05.  Thankfully the bus stop was right beside the hotel and a McDonalds.  I thought I would go in an get an ice tea. However, I went inside and saw they had more tea drinks than the US did.  I wanted to take a closer look.

This McDonalds had all kinds of yummy looking treats.  If I had been hungry, and not just ate, I would have tried a wrap with avocado...I hope we get these in the states soon.  They also had really delicious looking muffins.  But what shocked me most was that they were selling Matcha's and Chai Lattes. 

I decided to get a chai latte.

McDonalds Chai Latte. 3.60 Euro

The chai was okay. It was on the sweeter side.  It tasted like an instant mix. It was just alright, I would get it again, but it is not something I would search out.  Maybe if they do bring it to the states, they will get a better flavor.  They sure have iced tea down right!

I was in a cute area.  My hotel was nice, especially for being only $43 US.

I snagged my Vienna Starbucks mug, yay!!!

Now Newark to Cleveland.  Grabbed my bags in Newark- opened them and confirmed nothing was missing or broken.  Went through customs again and put them on a plane to Cleveland.

Safely Home!!  What an incredible 10 days.  I loved every minute.

1 Peter 4:10-11, ESV

10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Kurda, Erbil International Airport Tea, takes my last 3 Denarii

 Day 10, today I leave Kurdistan.

One last tea at the apartment...with cheese and apples, and a tea cookie.

This tea brand, CiHAN Tea is a tea I saw around town.  This was a green tea.  It was a good tea.

CiHAN Plaza Group, Kirkuk Road, Erbil, IRAQ

this photo is courtesy of my friend- I only saw the sign once when I was there, but it was at night and I could not get a photo.  She sent it to me.  How fun is this?!!!

CiHAN TEA | Pure Ceylon Tea

Saying goodbye to the view.

I packed 10 days of souvenirs into 2 bags, but those bags can't hold all the memories I made.  Corny, I know, but it was an incredible vacation.

I am taking back with me:

6 teapots

18 teacups

18 saucers

12 spoons

12 packages of tea

spices of- cardamon, saffron, rose buds, and cinnamon

Tea tray

2 containers of boiled sugar

2 pounds of saffron rock sugar

6 small treat plates

2 containers of date syrup

box of dates

date cookies

pistachio dessert

2 packages of coffee

8 tea stickers

Earl Grey toothpaste

tea journal 

picnic blanket

and one Kurdish scarf

Trip with so many memories was priceless!

Ready to head out.  I was super excited that they let me send both suitcases under the plan for free.  I just carried on my purse and picnic blanket.

The airport "art"

Here I go!

I have 3000 Denari left...a Kurdish tea is 3000 Denari.

I was ready to get one last tea before I left the Middle East.  Even though I was taking enough tea to start my own Middle East tea shop.

This cafe has some food as well.  But I stuck with just the tea.

A few tea options. But only one was what I was looking for...Kurdish Tea.  A large was 3,000 Denarii.

1500 IQD or Denarii = $1

3000 Denarii = $2

4500 Denarii = $3

6000 Denarii = $4

Kurda Company – Catering

The tea was good. I would have liked more cardamom though - I have gotten used to having the cardamom in my tea. I had to chuckle to myself as I added two sugars to the tea.  After 10 days I have started to change my tea drinking.  I never add sugar to my tea, lol.

Things I learned about Kurdish Tea while I was in Iraq:

Tea here is called Chai.  It is a black Ceylon tea with cardamon.

A teahouse is the second most visited place in Iraq, just after the mosques.

Tea is the number one drink in Iraq.

There are tea houses all over Erbil and some are for men only.  The men sit around- drink tea, play games, talk business, and politics.  

Tea houses in Iraq are called chai khana.

It is becoming more acceptable to women to be allowed in some teahouses.

Iraqis are said to drink 1 pound of tea a month.  In 2021, Iraq was the largest importers of Ceylon tea.

Tea is for rich and poor, old and young.  It is a part of the culture in Iraq.

In the 19th century the governor of Bhagdad turned all the coffee houses into tea houses.

But tea really gained it's popularity when the British army came to Iraq.

 I've heard that people will start their day with Kurdish tea too.  That if they don't they believe they will often have headaches and become dizzy.

If you buy tea along the streets here it is less and .50

Iraqi tea is served in a small cup made of glass called “Istikan” and this word means “East Tea

Can”.  In other countries, I have heard them called Tulip cups, because of the shape.

 Tea is made in a Samovar.  The bottom kettle has the hot water, the top, smaller kettle has the stronger tea concentrate.  You would fill the cup up with around 3/4 of the black tea and then the rest with hot water.  You try to fill the cup up as full as you can.

When tea is served it comes on a saucer, with the cup and a spoon.  The spoons can stick together.  If a man receives two spoons that means he will have two wives.

To cool the tea, some pour the tea in the saucer to drink it.  Some also keep the teacup in the saucer and lift the saucer up to drink from the cup, since the tea can be so hot.

There are a few things that can be added to this tea...a cinnamon stick, a rose bud, saffron, and even a  tea perfume.

Tea is served with dates, sunflower seeds, pistachios, cookies, and other sweet treats. 

The teaspoon is left in the cup when the tea is poured, if left out they think of you as inferior to them.  (I also read that you never serve the spoon in the cup.  It all depends on what part of Iraq you are from.  When served in Erbil, it always had a spoon in the cup when it was brought to me. Yet, when I went to a Kurdish home, he made the tea without the spoon in it.)

People love the clinking of the teaspoon along the teacup as the sugar is stirred in.  The clinking sounds are heard all over shops and bazars.

You will find kiosks of tea sellers on the side of streets, in the bazar, and all along the roads in villages.

Picnics always includes tea.  People will grill their food over wood and charcoal and then put the kettle on.  Some say tea over wood or charcoal is the best.

If you go to someone's house, it is rude for them not to offer tea.  And you usually will have at least 2 cups.

Hello Vienna Austria!

I arrived in Vienna at 7pm.  I spent the night and left Vienna at 10am Friday morning for the states.

What a great trip...and so many teas!

1 Peter 4:10-11, ESV

10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Senso Karak Chai Tea

 

I tried this tea while visiting friends in Erbil, Iraq.

Karak Chai tea (which names means Strong Tea) is a a style of masala chai.  It is a strong, sweet, spiced tea that is popular in the Middle East, India, and Pakistan.  It has black tea, milk (typically evaporated milk), sugar, cardamom, ginger and cinnamon.

Depending on the region it will also have cloves, pepper, star anise, honey, and saffron.

One of the differences between Karak and Masala Chai is that Karak is less spicy. Karak usually only has two or three spices.

www.sensofoods.com
https://www.instagram.com/senso_chaikarak/?hl=en

I enjoyed this tea.  I was not familiar with Karak chai before this trip.  So, it was fun to try something new like this.

I loved hanging out and playing games with my friends.  Also, it was fun to be in Iraq and watch the Presidential Inauguration. 

And the President was drinking tea before the big event!

I also was super excited to wake up and find that Ohio State Football won!

O-H!!

1 Peter 4:10-11, ESV

10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.