Table of Contents
“The mystery of life isn't a problem to solve, but a reality to experience.”
- Frank Herbert, 'Dune'
Welcome, to the home page of Marko Štajgár
The tea culture
All my life I have been struggling with my addiction to soda and caffeine, and I always have been looking for a better alternative. Some time ago, I was staying overnight with my friend in his house, and I was introduced to the gongfu style of making tea, and I was mesmerized by the ritual. Since then, I embarked on my tea drinking journey and fell in love with the culture.
I have always loved artisan-made things like tachimori go board’s, so exploring all of the different kinds of teaware was a great experience. When I was younger, I loved pokemon and gormiti, so when I stumbled uppon Tea pet’s I at once knew that I had to start a collection, this really got me excited like a little child again. When I was done exploring, I chose handmade clay Japanese-style teaware and a kyusu teapot (I don’t really like porcelain and gaiwan’s). I may not be the most culturally appropriate tea drinker, but with my Japanese-style set, I discovered that I have a taste mainly for sheng pu-erh and high-mountain oolongs.
Some of my favorite tea’s:
| Tea | Origin | Type of tea |
|---|---|---|
| Yue Guang Bai | China | White / pu-erh |
| Dong Fang Mei Ren | Taiwan | Oolong |
| Wu Yi Shan Qi Lan | China | Oolong |
| Wu Yi Hong Cha | China | Red |
| Any ancient-tree sheng puerh (for example) | China | Pu-erh |
Bonsai and the art of horticulture
The Japanese culture is beautiful, I have never actively watched anime or read manga, but Japanese art was always mesmerizing to me. The art of shodō calligraphy (I do like fountain pen’s) was my first exposure to eastern art styles that I discovered in my teens when I was reading a lot of Tolkien’s works and trying to learn Tengwar. Next came bonsai, but I did not start growing and shaping them until recently, when I started to live on my own. Im very much still a beginner, but I find the art of tree sculpting beautiful. I really started to believe that everyone should, in their lifetime, “raise a tree.”.
As of today, I have a 3 year old Fukien tea bonsai that is in the process of growing and cultivating a good root architecture. Some day, when I have more experience, I would like to raise and shape a Chinese elm.
Before bonsai, in my spare time, I made self-sustaining bioshperes / Vivariums in jars or even bottles.