I can say that I am more of a tea person rather than a coffee person. I like the smell of tea! Thus a walk (or even only a ride) around tea plantation area itself is a pleasure thing to do since we’ll be surrounded by green scenery, fresh air and obviously the smell. The familiarization trip to Banjarnegara and Wonosobo that was being organized by Central Java Tourism board, not only bring us pass the tea plantation. We learned more about the journey of a tea starts from leaf until it become a ready-to-sell tea, and off course a factory visit too. But let me take you back to what made this trip special.

Alid of alidabdul.com is one of the most-fun-to-be-with creatures on the Familiarization trip. The trip was held on December 4-5, 2014, in Banjarnegara and Wonosobo, Central Java. He is a huge fan of anything to do with Bollywood! Really! I saw it with my own eyes; he was singing all the Indian songs that were being played on our mini bus during the trip. Need more proof to convince you that Alid is one of a kind Bollywood fans? Look at the picture below and see how passionate Alid flapped the shawl. 🙂

Bollywood scene in tea plantation

Picture of Alid and I above was taken by Yusmei at Tambi Tea Plantation in Tambi village, Wonosobo. We were visiting the tea plantation and we were staying there for two nights (Yes! They had homestays and villas there). I visited the area last year and heard about the tea plantations around Wonosobo, but didn’t have a chance to visit. At that time, I only visited Dieng;  the famous Telaga Warna and temples around the area. I should have visited the tea plantation, because that place is so much fun!

tour in tambi

So, did you know that tea pickers in Tambi will pick 70-100 kg of tea leaves a day! It was an amazing site to see! They were seriously professional. Very fast!

Did you also know that good quality tea shouldn’t be dark, but transparent like water. Kind of just sprinkle a tiny bit of tea essence. So basically the really red thick colour tea is the worst quality one. It’s often not even from the leaves, but the branch. There are many more tea-related facts that are definitely worth learning about!

You should try a tour of the Tambi tea plantation. Oh, the factory tour was also fascinating. You’ll see the whole process of turning a fresh tea leaf (or can be the branch) and transforming it into a ready-to-sell tea in a process that takes more or less 22 hours.

factory tour in tambitea in tambitambi famtrip jateng

The process starts with withering (15 hours), rolling (40 minutes), enzymatic oxidation (130 minutes), drying (25 minutes) and at last grading process (6 hours). Wow, right?

So having a Bollywood scene in a tea plantation with Alid was a highlight, but a quick chitchat with some of the tea pickers was also remarkable. I told you one more time, they might be ninjas you know. They were able to do their job and also talk to me at the same time!

tea pickers in Tambi

Disclaimer: This familiarization trip was sponsored by Central Java Tourism board, but as always, this story is entirely my own opinion (and mixed with facts from the tour guide!).

Don’t forget to check out articles from other bloggers of #FamTripJateng participants (in alphabetic order):

Alid Abdul – Bermain Sambil Belajar di Perkebunan Teh Tambi
Andika Awan – Keseruan #FamTripJateng 2014
Ari Murdiyanto – Pondok Wisata Tambi, Tempat Bermalam di Tengah Kebun Teh
Dzofar – Wisata Jawa Tengah: Keajaiban Rambut Gimbal di Dieng
Fahmi Anhar – Kumpul Travel Bloggers di Wonosobo
Halim Santoso – Perjalanan Manis Buah Carica
Idah Ceris – Bonus Plus-Plus Dari Bukit Sidengkeng
Indri Juwono – Janji Kelak Menuju Dieng
Krisna KS – Carica?? Ya Dieng!!
Oryza – Kisah Kyai Kolodete dan Rambut Gimbal di Kalangan Masyarakat Dieng
Putri Normalita – Visit Jateng : Anak Gimbal dan ‘Warna’ di Telaga Warna
Rijal Fahmi – Kisah Perjalanan Teh Tambi
Rinta Dita – Mencari Hangat dalam Semangkok Mie Ongklok
Wihikan Wijna – Mengenal Jawa Tengah Bareng Travel Blogger
Yofangga Rayson – Ayo Piknik, Jangan Kaya Orang Susah
Yusmei – Rambut Gembel, Antara Rezeki dan Cobaan

 
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