Hello beautiful people! My name is Adrian Vega and I couldn’t be more excited in joining the GJTea as a Tea Fellow. Oddly enough, my tea journey began through a health and wellness introduction. Going into college I realized I needed to transition into a healthier lifestyle and picked up the tradition of drinking tea. Little did I know my entire world was about to be flipped upside down.
After about a year of drinking tea and living through certain experiences, tea started to feel like it was my calling. I became obsessed and started trying tea’s from all over the world and visiting local tea ceremonies. During this time I was introduced to a local tea shop where I started working and gaining more and more knowledge. Eventually this led me to working for a company called Small Tea in Miami.
A few months into working at Small Tea, the owner was traveling to Japan for a Japanese Tea Master Course. Even though he was leaving to Japan, I was already planning on finding out more about this course and figuring out how I would make it there.
Sure enough, about a year later I was on my way to Wazuka where my life would change forever. Although I might have had certain expectations on the course, it completely shattered any expectations and surpassed anything I could have ever asked for. Like many others, my experience in Wazuka was one of community and family, all held together by a beautiful passion for tea. After only being in Wazuka for a little over two weeks, I consider Wazuka one of my home’s and has a unique space in my heart.
During my studies I realized how exquisite Japanese tea’s really are. To me, there is nothing comparable to it. The complexity of an exquisitely rich Gyokuro to the great, everyday Sencha rocked my world in a way I wasn’t expecting.
After my studies in Wazuka I was able to travel around Japan for about 3 weeks and got to see how beautiful the country is. Having traveled all over the world, there is something that speaks differently to me when in Japan. Ancient traditions, attention to detail, tranquility, laughter. Now being part of this community I just want to say thank you to everyone for making this a reality and I look forward to meeting all of you.
On a side note, a couple of things about me. I currently live north of Miami in a small beach town called Hallandale Beach. Recently, I got hired by an incredible specialty coffee company to spearhead their new sister brand tea company. I am 26 years old, come from an Argentinian/Nicaraguan family and lived in Argentina for a while. Some of my passions include music, fútbol, the arts, reading, the beach, exercising, philosophy/history, and socio-politcal activism.
Thank you for taking the time in reading my message and have a blessed day. I look forward to sharing a cup of tea with you.