Ou r Sp ecia l Gu id es fo r Fo r eign Dign it a r ies
Delve a Lit t le Deep er in t o J a p a n ’s At t r a ct io n s!
Continuing Japan’s Traditional Culture: Gateway to the Tea Ceremony---Trial lesson at Salon---What do you imagine when you think of tea ceremony classrooms? Especially forbeginners, they may appear rather formidable places. The lessons look difficult; it mustbe hard sitting on your heels for a long time; perhaps you have wanted to try but did notknow where to go. In the past newcomers basically needed an introduction to join, so it
is no wonder that beginners feel overawed. And in this busy day and age, maybe it is alsodifficult to set aside a fixed hour every week for lessons.
At the Salon shops, however, it is possible to study the tea ceremony casually while
using proper utensils at the same time. The shops are conveniently located in commercial
facilities near railway stations, and you can make reservations online and visit at yourown pace to fit in with yourcommuting or shopping. Iwent along to the Salon
Nihombashishopinside

Nihombashi Takashimaya
S.C. in Tokyo for a trial
lesson and a talk with its
manager,Ms.

NozomiWatanuki.

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International Hospitality and Conference Service Association (IHCSA)The Salon shops were established by the Nakagawa Masashichi Shoten Group, which
was founded in Nara in 1716 and has the vision of “Revitalizing Japanese craft.”
Proposing ways of enjoying the tea ceremony suited to modern times, they haveintroduced a brand that lowers the threshold for the tea ceremony culture, which tends
to be somewhat aloof. At present there are four Salon shops in Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama,and Nara.

Original System Overturns Traditional Image
Because the system is so easy to understand, enabling people to make reservations
online and continue at their own pace, even complete beginners will feel like giving it atry. Until now beginners who have wanted to start learning the tea ceremony have faced
many difficult obstacles, such as where to go and how the various schools differ in termsof etiquette and instruction. They have tended to feel somewhat daunted. At the Salon
shops, however, there is no such stiffness. Visitors can study the tea ceremony as apleasure and as a part of their daily lives, learning in a balanced manner about the spiritof hospitality, the model of etiquette, tea making, and so on, and knowledge relating to
the history and rules of the tea ceremony. In addition, the Salon shops skillfully makeuse of modern technology. As well as the in-shop lessons, students can watch videos
repeatedly online, enabling them to prepare for and review classes. “The rich tea
ceremony connects with various forms of Japanese culture,” commented Ms. Watanuki,“but unfortunately the number of people learning the tea ceremony these days is on thedecline. That is why we introduced this new system, which is more suited to the times.”

Trial Lesson
The practice area was located behind a noren
curtain at the back of the shop. The first thing thatsurprised me was that the space did not have tatami
mats but a table and chairs. “We want people to feelat ease upon arriving at the gateway to tea ceremony
culture and entering the world of the tea ceremony,”
explained Ms. Watanuki, “That is why we have thistable-and-chair environment. Most of the time
people wear Western clothes and live and work in
Western-style rooms, so we are proposing this new
way of enjoying the tea ceremony by beginning tolearn casually in familiar surroundings.”

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International Hospitality and Conference Service Association (IHCSA)The practice area, with its wide table, has a relaxing atmosphere, and the hanging
scroll, flower arrangement, and decoration are changed seasonally. “The tea ceremony is
not only about enjoying the taste of tea,” said Ms. Watanuki. “It includes the decorationand everything. This hospitality, including the atmosphere of the place, is tea ceremony
culture.”The 90-minute trial lesson consisted of an experience of tea ceremony hospitality
demonstrated by an instructor and a lecture on tea ceremony history. First, to calm me
down, I was served a cup of hot water with floating perilla. At proper tea gatherings,
such hot-water drinks are served to guests before they enter the tea ceremony proper tomoisten their throats.

Hot water with floating perilla and main sweet (omogashi)

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Hospitality by the Instructor
The trial lesson began with a demonstration of tea making by the instructor. There
was a box with tea-making utensils on the table, and the instructor proceeded to maketea without any wasted time, maintaining a beautiful posture throughout.

I savored the tea made by the instructor together with seasonal Japanese
confectionery procured from the Kashiya traditional sweet shop in Nara. The
confectionery is changed twice a month and, like the decoration, gives a sense of theseason. In the actual lessons as well, students can enjoy the seasonal tea, sweets, anddecoration, which are changed every month. On this occasion, the tea bowl was black,and the green color of the matcha shone beautifully. I fully savored this first bowl of tea
in the trial lesson with all five senses.

Learning about the Tea Ceremony
After the tea-making demonstration, I received a lecture using slides and learned
about how this unique culture had developed, including the history of the tea ceremonyin Japan and cultural aspects. The content of thelecture was easy to understand even for abeginner. I learned about the aesthetic concept ofwabi (beauty in simplicity), the development ofvarious forms of Japanese culture in theMuromachi

period(1333–1568)

andtheirinteraction, the life of the tea master Sen noIHCSA Café

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Rikyu (1522–91), and establishment of the tea ceremony. Even just through this trial
lesson, names, words, and various knowledge about the tea ceremony that I had known
superficially beforehand came together, and I was able to understand how our present
image of the tea ceremony has taken shape through history.

Practice
After the lecture, I learned how to handle and hold the whisk, the amount of tea, andthe temperature and quantity of hot water, and then I made tea myself. As I received
advice about such matters as how to hold the tea bowl down, posture, and whisking, it
was quite easy to understand. I was also told about the differences between the various
tea ceremony schools, so my generalknowledge about the tea ceremony
increased as well. I sipped the tea
that I had made myself together withdry sweets. The first time I had
simply enjoyed the tea, but thesecond time I learned about the wayof drinking, manners, and their
meaning too. After I had finished mybowl of tea, the trial lesson ended.
Dry sweets carefully produced by Kashiya

As well as this lesson area, Salon has a tearoom serving Japanese confectionery andtea and a shop selling original tea utensils. In the tearoom, as well as enjoying tea madeby the staff and sweets,
customers can have asimpletea

ceremony

experience as well. Andwhileutilitarian,

theutensils on sale in theshop are simple andperfectly suited to ourmodern lifestyle. Evenwithout a tea ceremonyroom at home, you canIHCSA Café

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realize a lifestyle for enjoying the tea ceremony in your daily life.
Salon offers these 90-minute trial lessons for first-time visitors. Then, if you want tocontinue learning, there are elementary, intermediate, and advanced courses. (Eachcourse consists of a total of six 60-minutes lessons.) A ticket system is used, andreservations can be made online up to two hours prior to the start of the lesson. Salon’stea ceremony classes really are abreast of the times!

Conversation with Ms. Watanuki, Manager of Salon Nihombashi and MyInstructor in the Trial Lesson
Q: What are Salon’s unique points compared with other tea ceremony classes?
A: First, our table-and-chair environment is different. Second, instead of a master, wehave instructors who convey the attractions of the tea ceremony in an enjoyable manner.
And third, we have systematized the study of tea. Our lessons have a dual structure.
Before practice, students watch a video to obtain knowledge. In other tea ceremonyclasses, usually you cannot take photos or notes. But here, to entrench the knowledge,
we permit students to watch the video, freely take notes during the lessons, andphotograph the decoration and so on. Some students enjoy taking photos of theconfectionery every month!
Q: Why did you think of introducing a system that makes it so easy for even beginners
to start?
A: We wanted more people toencounter the attractions of thetea ceremony, and we began with
the idea of enabling people tostudy more casually, acquiring
techniques
framework

beyondofschools

theandenjoying learning about the tea
ceremony’s history.

Q: Do any foreigners come to practice tea ceremony here?
A: Since we are unable to respond in English, we do not have any completely foreignlanguage courses. But some international students and foreigners working in Japan docome here.

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Q: Going forward, are you thinking of offering courses in English?
A: It would be rather difficult to provide courses themselves in English, but we do havestaff capable of speaking English to customers drinking tea in the tearoom space. Wheninbound travel resumes, we would certainly like to do that.
Q: What especially do youplace

importanceonin

practice here?
A: Well, the concept of Salon,
and the origin of the Salonbrand name in Japanese, is“Contemplating

beautythrough tea,” so we place
importance on polishing yoursense of value and aesthetic
sense through tea. Our aim is to enable people to acquire a spirit of hospitality, a model
for realizing this spirit, and knowledge to add color to this model so that their own
measures for seeing things, measures for thinking, and viewpoint change and their daily
lives are enriched.
Q: Do you have any new ideas for the future?
A: We are distributing various contents through online courses and so on via Instalive
and Zoom so that, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, people can enjoy the tea ceremony intheir own homes. People use this online service when there is no Salon nearby or when
they are unable to go outdoors. We also provide links to the workshops of artisans making
tea ceremony utensils and confectionery. We want to do more of this in the future.
Q: What do you think is the place of the tea ceremony in Japanese culture?
A: I think the tea ceremony can be the axis for all kinds of Japanese culture and lifestyle.
The tea ceremony is related to clothing, cuisine, and housing, and I believe it enriches
life. It indicates the way of living and lifestyle of the Japanese people.
Q: Have you felt anything in particular amid the Covid-19 pandemic?
A: Once again I have become keenly aware that guests are part and parcel of the teaceremony. Because of the pandemic, it has become difficult to hold large tea gatherings,
full tea ceremonies with meals, and other events. But maybe by choosing who toIHCSA Café

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commune with---in other words, by sharing with family members or close friends---wehave been able to return to the essence of the tea ceremony, which is the idea of “onetaste, one mind.” In addition, the tea ceremony is a good way of enriching your time athome. It is very relaxing to carefully prepare tea at home for yourself or your family andto savor it. Moreover, matcha contains a lot of caffeine, which has a stimulant effect, andserotonin, which moderates mood, so a cup of green tea is most relaxing. Overseas
matcha has been described as a “superfood” with substantial health benefits.
It would be a shame not to experience the tea ceremony and a shame not to include it
in your daily life. As Ms. Watanuki said, “The tea ceremony is lifelong. You can begin
anytime, and even if you quit, you can resume anytime.” First of all, why not take that
initial step into tea ceremony culture?

Cooperation:
Salon Nihombashi Branch
Nihombashi Takashimaya S.C.
Annex 4F, 2-5-1 Nihombashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-6104
Tel.: 03-5542-1144
Business hours
Lessons: 10:30–20:00
Shop: 10:30–20:00*Currently operating shortened business hours.
*Regular holidays are the same as those for the facility as a whole.

https://salon-tea.jp/shop/ (Japanese)

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