Tea - more then a non-alcoholic national drink
Just as in some regions in Europe, the procedure of drinking tea plays an important role in Turkish daily life. Whenever there is an opportunity to have a tea, they will take it. What is different to Europe is the way of doing it. In Turkey you will get the tea served in tiny little glasses with two pieces of sugar on a small tray.
It is also prepared in a completely different way:
In Turkey they make it using two different sized metal pots. The bigger one is for boiling hot water. The smaller one, which is on top of the big one, is for the tea. After some minutes of simmering you pour some of the tea into the glass and fill it up with hot water. The advantage is that you are able to decide whether you want strong or weak tea.
Sometimes you will get lemon with your tea, but you will never get milk. Çay is drunk all day long. You will be offered a glass after your meal in any restaurant, usually on the house.
Enjoy your Turkish tea breaks - have a çay!
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