trying to track down some tea in china
May 10th, 2008, 05:49 PM
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trying to track down some tea in china
Hi, Please can anyone help me try to track down some tea that my husband brought me from a past trip to Beijing.I LOVE IT!!!!! I am going to China next wednesday and I was wondering if anyone can help me identify the store by the container. It say China Tea on the cover. It is a brown box with a tiny light brown and green brick pattern on the side. It has a picture of a horse pulling a chariot with two people in it. I know my husband got it in a store in the tea district. He said it was a street that had a bunch of old buildings with pharmacies,the oldest movie theatre and tea shops on it. The tea is a black tea with small full dried rose buds in it . It also has some dried what I think is fruit. One is orange in color and the other is dark brownish red in color. It has a sweet fruity taste to it. ANY help is appreciated. I am going to bring pictures of the box and some of the tea when I go but this might be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. But I am on a quest!! Thanks alot for any help or hints that you can give me
May 11th, 2008, 08:40 AM
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How about bringing the empty box with you? If there is some Chinese writing on the box, it might actually say the name of the store on the box and you don't know it?? If it's a big box and you are worried about space in the luggage, assuming you find the tea you are looking for, the new box would replace the old empty box in your luggage.
If by chance, there is some Chinese writing on the box, ask someone who speaks Chinese in your area (maybe go into a Chinese restaurant) and ask them to translate anything written on the box.
Good luck!
If by chance, there is some Chinese writing on the box, ask someone who speaks Chinese in your area (maybe go into a Chinese restaurant) and ask them to translate anything written on the box.
Good luck!
May 11th, 2008, 11:21 AM
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If you have a sample of the tea remaining, then finding it again will not be too much of a problem, although as crops vary from year to year you may not find the exact same taste. If you do have a sample, then you just need to go to Malian Dao--a street (and a side turning or two) of practically nothing but tea wholesalers and retailers.
I found the people at this store very helpful:
北京更香茶叶
And the address is
马莲道甲10号
Even if you only have the tin to take and show them, they may indeed (as suggested) above, be able to read the leaf and the source from what's written on the tin and/or any residual smell. They will then bring samples for you to taste (this can actually be a very pleasant way to spend an hour or two although there's enough caffeine about that you'll float out of the store afterwards) until you identify what it is. Some English is spoken. Print out this note and show the characters to a taxi. The street, Malian Dao, runs north-south in the southwest of the city not far south of the Beijing West Railway Station. The shop mentioned above is in a side turning to the east, almost on the corner.
The street with the oldest cinema is Dazhalan Jie, at the west end on the south side. This street is mostly clothing, but has assorted other souvenirs which may well include tea, and there are indeed also old pharmacies and silk stores. This runs west of Qian Men Dajie, a newly pedestrianised street running directly south from Qian Men which is the south end of Tian'an Men Square.
The characters are:
大栅栏街
but you can easily get here by taking the metro (line 2) to Qian Men and walking five minutes south and turning right.
However, I'd say Malian Dao would be a better bet to find the same tea because there are quite literally hundreds of types of tea on sale there and real expertise, as well as better non-souvenir-y prices.
Good luck.
Peter N-H
I found the people at this store very helpful:
北京更香茶叶
And the address is
马莲道甲10号
Even if you only have the tin to take and show them, they may indeed (as suggested) above, be able to read the leaf and the source from what's written on the tin and/or any residual smell. They will then bring samples for you to taste (this can actually be a very pleasant way to spend an hour or two although there's enough caffeine about that you'll float out of the store afterwards) until you identify what it is. Some English is spoken. Print out this note and show the characters to a taxi. The street, Malian Dao, runs north-south in the southwest of the city not far south of the Beijing West Railway Station. The shop mentioned above is in a side turning to the east, almost on the corner.
The street with the oldest cinema is Dazhalan Jie, at the west end on the south side. This street is mostly clothing, but has assorted other souvenirs which may well include tea, and there are indeed also old pharmacies and silk stores. This runs west of Qian Men Dajie, a newly pedestrianised street running directly south from Qian Men which is the south end of Tian'an Men Square.
The characters are:
大栅栏街
but you can easily get here by taking the metro (line 2) to Qian Men and walking five minutes south and turning right.
However, I'd say Malian Dao would be a better bet to find the same tea because there are quite literally hundreds of types of tea on sale there and real expertise, as well as better non-souvenir-y prices.
Good luck.
Peter N-H
May 11th, 2008, 08:56 PM
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Thank you all so much for all your suggestions. They are all very good. I never thought about taking the tin/box to a chinese restaurant in my area. That is brillant!!! I will use all the advice and see if I can track it down and if I can I will post the information when I get back. Wish me luck.
May 12th, 2008, 11:56 AM
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> I never thought about taking the tin/box to a chinese restaurant in my area. That is brillant!!!
With no offence intended, this isn't quite as brilliant as it looks at first sight.
First of all, any translation of the tea name or the address of its source won't be of any use to you, since anyone who is going to help you in Beijing will still need the information in their own language.
Secondly, the chances are very high that anyone you speak to in a Chinese restaurant at home will be a Cantonese speaker, whereas in Beijing Mandarin is spoken. So even if you write down phonetically what the name of the tea is you may very well have the wrong sounds, and ones that will be meaningless to a Mandarin speaker.
Take a sample of the tea and the box (or just a photocopy of any text) to Beijing, go to Malian Dao, and you should be able get what you need.
Peter N-H
With no offence intended, this isn't quite as brilliant as it looks at first sight.
First of all, any translation of the tea name or the address of its source won't be of any use to you, since anyone who is going to help you in Beijing will still need the information in their own language.
Secondly, the chances are very high that anyone you speak to in a Chinese restaurant at home will be a Cantonese speaker, whereas in Beijing Mandarin is spoken. So even if you write down phonetically what the name of the tea is you may very well have the wrong sounds, and ones that will be meaningless to a Mandarin speaker.
Take a sample of the tea and the box (or just a photocopy of any text) to Beijing, go to Malian Dao, and you should be able get what you need.
Peter N-H
May 12th, 2008, 12:53 PM
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It does not hurt to have as much information as possible. The staff in the Chinese restaurant in my town are from all over China, so we have the Mandarin and Cantonese covered. If they can't help her, then fine, but I have gotten things translated in restaurants numerous times.
Good Luck nomadwoman!
Good Luck nomadwoman!
May 12th, 2008, 01:38 PM
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Hi Peter and freeman, I did take the tin/box to 2 chinese restaurant in town. They could not help me with the name of the store because it wasn't on the box but they both recognized the tea and were able to write it down for me in Mandarin. They also gave me some ideas for other teas to try that they liked. They both said that it was a very nice/fairly expensive tea from the south of China. Yes, you are right that I probably would not remember how to pronounce the tea phonetically because as soon as she said it I forgot, but hopefully she got it correct in Mandarin. I will see in a few days. I am going to bring some of the tea and the container with me. Thanks again for all your help.
May 13th, 2008, 07:30 PM
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Hi again, 25 hours and counting down before I go. I can't believe how many small details it takes to go on this trip. I wish I was more like my husband who just packs and goes.I have read in books and on this site that the street for tea is Malian Dao but no matter which map I look at I can't seem to find it.I'm assuming that it is a small street. Can anyone give me some major streets or directions on how to get there. I don't think I am that far away but maybe that is deceiving. I am staying at the Capital hotel around Chang'an Jie and Wangfujing Dajie streets. Thanks again.There are so many places that I want to go to in such a short time that I feel like a spinning top!!!
May 13th, 2008, 09:52 PM
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Your hotel is no where near Malian Dao, which has already been mentioned as being south of the West Station.
As has already been said, just jump in a cab.It will take 20 minutes or so, and all you have to do is to show the characters already given to you in an earlier posting to a taxi driver. If you can't see the characters then simply adjust the language preferences in your browser. If that doesn't work all you have to do is get the hotel reception to write Malian Dao down for you in characters. The shop name given was Beijing Gengxiang (even more fragrant) Chaye (tea leaves), and with this information a receptionist should be able to write that down, too. You've already been given a rough description of where it is in relation to the whole street.
This description of the street's approximate location has also already been provided:
> The street, Malian Dao, runs north-south in the southwest of the city not far south of the Beijing West Railway Station.
You can also walk about 15-20 minutes up Zhengyi Lu from your hotel and left along Dong Chang'an Jie to the Tian'an Men Dong metro station, and take a train west to Muxidi. Or you could walk south to Qian Men Dong Dajie then west to Qian Men station (maybe 15 minutes), and take a train west to Fucheng Men then change to line 1 and go west to Muxidi from there. Take the southwest exit and walk west for ten minutes to Bei Fengwo Nan Lu, turning left into that and then hailing a cab there (they can't stop on the main Fuxing Lu). But for a difference in cost of maybe US$2, you might as well cab it the whole way.
There are no really good maps of Beijing by the way, but there are certainly no bi-lingual maps that are worth the paper they are printed on. They are even worse than the Chinese ones. You could always consider looking in a guide book, of course. Many do mention Malian Dao.
Peter N-H
As has already been said, just jump in a cab.It will take 20 minutes or so, and all you have to do is to show the characters already given to you in an earlier posting to a taxi driver. If you can't see the characters then simply adjust the language preferences in your browser. If that doesn't work all you have to do is get the hotel reception to write Malian Dao down for you in characters. The shop name given was Beijing Gengxiang (even more fragrant) Chaye (tea leaves), and with this information a receptionist should be able to write that down, too. You've already been given a rough description of where it is in relation to the whole street.
This description of the street's approximate location has also already been provided:
> The street, Malian Dao, runs north-south in the southwest of the city not far south of the Beijing West Railway Station.
You can also walk about 15-20 minutes up Zhengyi Lu from your hotel and left along Dong Chang'an Jie to the Tian'an Men Dong metro station, and take a train west to Muxidi. Or you could walk south to Qian Men Dong Dajie then west to Qian Men station (maybe 15 minutes), and take a train west to Fucheng Men then change to line 1 and go west to Muxidi from there. Take the southwest exit and walk west for ten minutes to Bei Fengwo Nan Lu, turning left into that and then hailing a cab there (they can't stop on the main Fuxing Lu). But for a difference in cost of maybe US$2, you might as well cab it the whole way.
There are no really good maps of Beijing by the way, but there are certainly no bi-lingual maps that are worth the paper they are printed on. They are even worse than the Chinese ones. You could always consider looking in a guide book, of course. Many do mention Malian Dao.
Peter N-H
May 14th, 2008, 08:59 AM
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Hi Peter, Yes I do understand that you have given me the information in an earlier post. But you mentioned several stores at one time with many different reference points and I don't read mandarin so I didn't understand what information you gave me in that language. Was it the name of a shop,a street or possible a tea?Since I have never been to Beijing I was confused. I REALLY appreciate the advice and information but I don't appreciate the continuous comments about the fact that you "already mentioned" this in a earlier report.It feels like a reprimand. I LOVE this site. It is the first place I go to when I'm taking a trip but it appears to me that there are people that just love to put other people down-and I'm not saying that that is you because you do seem to be a very helpful person. It makes me uncomfortable some times posting on this site. But thanks again for the information. I have printed it out and will take it with me.
