Tea, Sugar, a Dream - An Explanation

Welcome to my travel blogs! For my first blog, I thought I might give an explanation as to why I have titled my blogging, “Tea, Sugar, a Dream.” Where did this phrase come from? Years ago, when I began to travel to foreign countries, out of respect for other people’s cultures, I decided that at the very least I wanted to learn to say the words “please” and “thank you” in their languages. One country that I visited was Turkey, and when I was there, I had a difficult time pronouncing the words “teşekkür ederim,” the Turkish words for “thank you.” I asked a local for help, and he told me that a good way to remember the pronunciation is to say together quickly the words “tea, sugar, a dream.” If done correctly, I was saying the Turkish words for “thank you!”

“Tea, sugar, a dream” became significant for me in other ways throughout my travels, both the phrase itself, as well as the words individually. The first day I originally heard the phrase I liked how it sounded in English. No real explanation as to why. The phrase just struck me as sweet. (No pun intended.) Soon thereafter I thought that if I ever were to write a book about my travels, then “Tea, Sugar, a Dream” would be the title. Because then really, the title to my book would say “thank you!” And, therefore, my blogging title is also saying “thank you!”

Tea Pots on a wall in Vilnuis

Tea…Tea seems to be not only a universal drink, but also seems to be a way of connecting with people. Many countries have their own version of tea. Many countries also have a special ritual surrounding tea, such as certain times of the day to drink tea, or special foods that are served while drinking tea. Usually, when one visits a home, tea is offered to drink. And sometimes people just get together over a cup of tea. Recently when I was in Vietnam, I was constantly invited into people’s homes, where tea was already on the table, ready to be poured. Even with the language barrier in Vietnam, it seemed like drinking tea was a way that I connected with the people. By drinking tea, smiling, and using “sign language,” a conversation was made. And of course, I then said “thank you,” in Vietnamese, for the tea.

Sugar…Sugar just implies sweetness. And some people put sugar into their tea. I came up with the tag line of “Sweet Travels!” to use for my blogs.

Dream…I always had a long-time dream of traveling. When I began to make that dream a reality, many experiences during my travels have been beyond my wildest dreams!

I shall continue to learn to say “thank you” as I travel to other countries. Yet, I have not come across any other phrases of “thank you” that have had quite the meaning for me as “tea, sugar, a dream!”

Thank you, and Sweet Travels!