My colleague said she invented a new drink with a broad of smile.
NAMA-CHA is one of a famous green tea which is sold in Japan. I thought she was trying to make fun of me, so I said “But you are holding NAMA-CHA, right?” She explained she reused the pet bottle and the content was the tea that she made. She suggested me to try it and saying “it tastes and smells really bad”.
Can you believe it? She offered me a cup of tea and said like that. But it is a common behavior in Japan.
If you do, you might think as a pushy person. But if you come from abroad, it doesn’t matter. We tend to think foreigners are our guests and guests must be treated well.
Well, I was curious and I wanted to know whether she tried to be humble or she is telling me a truth. First, I smelled it. Yes, the smell was something that I haven’t encountered before. It smelled something sour. I doubted it might start to be rotten. I hesitated to drink it, so I said “It smelled sour. Is it right?” I wanted to reconfirm the smell that I smelled was right.
Then she said it was right because it was “Shii quaa saa’s tea”
She wanted to drink it everyday, but it is sour and it is really difficult to drink it only. So, she sorted out this problem by drink it with tea. I admired her inspiration. But, to be honest, it tasted something that I haven’t tried before. I wouldn’t say it tasted really bad but I’m not allowed to say it tasted fantastic!