Remember when I said that the Longjing Dragon Well Green Tea was not roasted (as Wikipedia might have you believe)... well, here's the deal. After plucking the very tops of the branches to retrieve the finest tea, the leaves are spread out over these metal basins (which are heated from underneath) and gently dried (not freakin' roasted, lol). The man shown below actually turns the leaves over and over by hand until the perfect amount of dryness has been achieved. They are not, I repeat not cooked as that would destroy much if not all of the teas beneficial properties.
The rest of the plantation grounds were no less spectacular. Flowing fountains, iconic sculptures, wooden bridges, stone fences and carvings all intermingled in what can surely be referred to as one of the worlds most idyllic settings. I could live here, drinking green tea all day and practicing kung-fu /qi-gong until my Chi was flowing like the Yangtzhe river, deep and wide.
(Below) A stone bridge leads the way to the plantations inner sanctum where we were to have dinner/lunch with some of the locals and other people in the area. This is one of the few lucky shots where the composition was devoid of tourists.
