Chongqing- When it comes to fellow British friends, the word tea culture might evoke the traditional scene of English afternoon tea, which became popular for high society in England during the mid 19th century, and when people drank tea grown in Ceylon or India served with tiers of sandwiches, scones, and pastries. In the modern era, this exists mostly in tourist settings in the United Kingdom.

In China, teahouses are still commonly found in all the cities. There are many different varieties of tea grown in China on top of the ubiquitous jasmine, chrysanthemum, and green teas, and many have certain Chinese medicinal properties such as clearing internal heat.

In Chongqing, old teahouses have their own special flavour. There are wide open courtyards, and wooden tables matched with simple benches or ratten chairs. Friends and neighbours congregate with lidded teacups in hand as they bite open sunflower seeds and crack peanut shells. From historical culture to the simple things in life, these customs have come to form a rich teahouse culture over time.