March 22, 2019
If there’s one thing my colleagues at Aria know about me, it’s that I love tea.
At Aria, I bring in a “tea of the week” to share the power of tea. Each tea has a story and strikes a different, unique chord. It warms the soul and evokes many of my fondest memories.
This week, I brought in Moroccan Mint tea, a special one for me because of my Tunisian heritage. Having lived our lives mostly in France and the U.S., my sister and I had trouble connecting with our Muslim family. Drinking traditional sweet mint tea and looking out over the shore together was our way of overcoming that cultural and language barrier. The tea still reminds me of the Mediterranean breeze and the taste of the sickly-sweet Tunisian candies our aunts pushed into our hands.
Rooibos is my favorite tea; every night in high school, my mom would set a cup of vanilla rooibos tea by my arm as I stayed up studying and she went off to bed. Light green tea blends remind me of Decembers spent at Christmas Markets in Germany, as we would take a break from a day in the cold to grab Kaffee-Kuchen, tea and cakes. Yerba maté tea reminds me of trips to Berlin with my friends, where we would dance the night away fueled by the rush of the caffeine (plus a bit of Jägermeister). Mariage Frères black teas remind me of opening care packages on icy, rushed days in college as I missed the grey rainy skies and the cobblestone streets of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (home).
By granting me reign over the tea program (and crowning me Tea Czar), Aria has allowed me to delve even further into my love and discovery of teas. For instance, my Aria mentor and I take regular trips to a tea boutique nearby (shout-out to Virtuous Teas), where I get to peruse, smell, and sample an immense selection of tea blends to inspire my “tea of the week.”
Thank you to Aria for cultivating a supportive workplace ambiance where I can continue to build fond memories over cups of tea. Check out Aria’s Instagram, @ariamarketing, to learn more about its ever-expanding company culture initiatives. Cheers!
