编者按：在中外文化交流的宏大叙事中，最动人的场景往往来自那些细微处。当不同文化背景的人以真诚的姿态相会，文化的传播便不再只是单向的输出。在这场跨越国界的对话中，每个参与者都能以自己独特的视角理解文化、传递文化。就像一粒石子投入湖面，个人的文化体验能激起层层涟漪，将理解与共鸣扩散至更远的地方。来自白俄罗斯的萨沙和玛琳娜，正是这样的“文化小大使”。她们通过一盏清茶品味中国文化，又将幽幽茶香带回故乡，向亲朋好友讲述自己在中国的故事。
“我很喜欢喝茶，中国的茶特别好喝。”谈及茶文化时，15岁的萨沙（Vasileuskaya Aliaksandra）眼里闪着光。不久前，她和玛琳娜（Paliakova Maryna）刚刚体验了中国茶道，其丰富的文化内涵让萨沙倍感新奇：“我在白俄罗斯也喜欢喝茶，但中国的茶和喝茶时的礼仪更加独特。”玛琳娜补充道：“在中国喝到的茶更淡也更苦，可是慢慢喝下去，能感受到一丝甜意。老师告诉我们，这叫‘先苦后甜’。”萨沙继续说：“我们还看到师傅表演沏茶，他的技艺非常复杂，令人赞叹。”她们已经迫不及待地想与家人和朋友分享中国的茶文化，“我觉得他们会喜欢的！”玛琳娜充满期待地说。
图为玛琳娜（左）和萨沙（右）接受采访现场
事实上，中白之间的茶缘并非始于今日。早在16世纪，中国茶叶便已传入白俄罗斯。到了17世纪后期，饮茶之风已经普及到社会的各个阶层。一些家庭喜欢用中国的陶瓷茶具，这些茶具的式样与中国茶壶相似，花色也多为中国式人物、树木和花草。但在壶身的设计上，又多流线形纹路，具有鲜明的欧洲特色。在长期的饮茶实践中，白俄罗斯人形成了自己独特的饮茶习惯：他们偏爱高浓度的红茶，并习惯加入大量的糖或果酱。因此，当萨沙与玛琳娜在中国茶席上看到茶师的精湛技艺，品尝到“淡而有味”的东方茶时，才会觉得格外新奇，也格外想把这种体验讲给家人朋友听。
图为俄式红茶
“茶。香叶，嫩芽。慕诗客，爱僧家。”方寸茶席之间，中华文化的脉络在氤氲的水汽间渐渐清晰。从茶马古道上的马蹄阵阵到海上丝绸之路的帆影重重，这种神奇的东方树叶曾代表中国文化走向世界。
如今，两位外国“小大使”将个人体验化作交流内容，使得茶再一次成为两种文化沟通的桥梁。她们的分享，不仅传播了中国茶道文化，也为自己国家的朋友更进一步了解中华文化打开了一扇窗。相信，通过他们的描述，东方的茶道褪去了异域的神秘面纱，回归到最本真的状态。在他们的交流中，中国茶道不再只是神秘的东方符号，而是融入生活的真实体验；西方饮茶习惯也不再是简单的异域印象，而是另一种生活智慧。原来对待同一片叶子，人类可以发展出如此不同却又各自成趣的生活方式。
图为中国茶道
在中国文化里，茶不仅是一种饮品，更承载着“和、敬、清、寂”的东方哲思：和，是人与自然的和谐；敬，是待人接物的礼数；清，是心境的澄澈；寂，是内心的安宁。一次品茶，实际上也是一次心灵的对话。在白俄罗斯，同样有悠久的饮茶传统，但更强调热烈与社交氛围。而中国茶道的缓慢、含蓄与内敛，则展现了如文人清者般“修身”的生活智慧。正因如此，当萨沙与玛琳娜体验中国茶时，她们才能敏锐地感受到其中“不同寻常”的气息。
文化的交流，往往始于好奇，成于共鸣。在这次采访中，茶成为跨越国界的纽带。对于两个白俄罗斯少女而言，这份体验不仅让她们理解了中国文化的细腻与深远，也让她们有了带回家乡的新话题。更重要的是，她们的讲述本身，就是文化互鉴的一部分——通过她们的声音，中国茶文化正悄然传入更广阔的世界。
图为萨沙在中国印象·沙龙活动现场
真正有效的文化传播，从来不是简单的语言交换，而是触及彼此心灵的对话。从“喝茶”到“懂茶”，再到“愿意分享茶”，这份由浅入深的体验，恰好体现了文明交流的路径。一盏茶，让世界看见中国，也让中国看到世界。这样的交流虽然细微，却能在青少年的心田埋下理解与友谊的种子。未来，当这些种子生根发芽，便会化作跨越国界的理解与共情。他们用切身的体会，让抽象的文化概念变得可触可感，为文化的交流互鉴赋予生命的厚度。
一茶一世界，一味一人生。当个体以真诚的姿态拥抱异域文化，便自然化身成为文明对话的天然使者。他们告诉我们：文明互鉴不是要消弭差异，而是在理解差异的过程中，让不同文明焕发新的光彩。我们期待有更多像萨沙和玛琳娜一样的文化使者来到中国，带着对中国文化的真切体悟，将东方文化的精髓传向世界。当茶香跨越国界，当故事代代相传，人类文明正是在这样真诚的交流中不断焕新。萨沙和玛琳娜的体验告诉我们：文明互鉴并非遥远的宏大叙事，而是从每一次真切的感知和分享开始。正是这些微小却真实的瞬间，构成了我们共同书写的文明新篇章。
图为玛琳娜（左1）和萨沙（左2）在中国印象·沙龙活动现场
撰稿人：何博媛
The Enduring Allure of Tea: From Personal Experience to Mutual Learning Among Civilizations
Editor's Note: In the grand narrative of cultural exchange, the most touching moments often come from the subtle details. When people from different cultural backgrounds meet with genuine sincerity, cultural transmission ceases to be a one-way street. In this cross-border dialogue, every participant can use their unique perspective to understand and convey culture. It's like a pebble dropped into a lake—a personal cultural experience can create ripples, spreading understanding and resonance to distant shores. Sasha and Maryna from Belarus are perfect examples of these Junior Cultural Ambassadors. They savored Chinese culture through a cup of tea and then brought its delicate fragrance back to their homeland, sharing their stories of China with friends and family.
"I love drinking tea, and the tea in China is especially delicious." Speaking about tea culture, 15-year-old Sasha (Vasileuskaya Aliaksandra) had a sparkle in her eyes. She and Maryna (Paliakova Maryna) had just experienced a Chinese tea ceremony, and its rich cultural depth made Sasha feel incredibly fascinated. "I also like to drink tea in Belarus, but the tea and the rituals for drinking it in China are much more unique." Maryna added, "The tea I drank in China was lighter and more bitter, but if you sip it slowly, you can taste a hint of sweetness. The teacher told us this is called 'bitter before sweet.'" Sasha continued, "We also watched a master perform the tea ceremony; their technique was very intricate and amazing." They couldn't wait to share Chinese tea culture with their families and friends. "I think they will love it!" Maryna said with anticipation.
In fact, the tea-steeped connection between China and Belarus has a long history. As early as the 16th century, Chinese tea was introduced to Belarus. By the late 17th century, tea-drinking had become popular among all social classes. Some families enjoyed using Chinese ceramic tea sets, which were similar in style to Chinese teapots, with patterns of Chinese figures, trees, and flowers. However, the teapots were often designed with flowing lines, giving them a distinctly European character. Through a long history of tea-drinking, Belarusians have developed their own unique habits: they prefer high-concentration black tea and are used to adding a large amount of sugar or jam. Therefore, when Sasha and Maryna saw the exquisite skills of the tea master and tasted the "light yet flavorful" Oriental tea, they found it particularly novel and felt a strong desire to share this experience with their families and friends.
"Tea. Fragrant leaves, tender buds. Admired by poets, cherished by monks." Within the small tea ceremony space, the threads of Chinese culture gradually become clear through the misty steam. From the constant thud of hooves on the Ancient Tea-Horse Road to the silhouettes of sails on the Maritime Silk Road, this magical Eastern leaf once represented Chinese culture as it traveled the world. Today, these two foreign "mini-ambassadors" have transformed their personal experiences into a form of cultural exchange, making tea a bridge for communication between two cultures once again. Their sharing not only spreads Chinese tea culture but also opens a window for their friends in Belarus to better understand Chinese culture. Through their descriptions, the Eastern tea ceremony sheds its veil of exotic mystery, revealing its most authentic state. In their exchange, Chinese tea is no longer a symbolic ritual but a real, lived experience; Western tea customs are no longer a simple foreign impression but another form of life's wisdom. It turns out that for the same leaf, humanity can develop such different, yet equally fascinating, ways of life.
In Chinese culture, tea is more than just a beverage; it embodies the Eastern philosophy of "harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility." Harmony is about balance between people and nature; respect is for proper etiquette; purity is a clear state of mind; and tranquility is inner peace. A tea tasting is, in essence, a dialogue of the soul. In Belarus, there is also a long tradition of drinking tea, but it's often more focused on a lively and social atmosphere. The slow, subtle, and reserved nature of the Chinese tea ceremony, however, reflects the life wisdom of "self-cultivation" found in classical scholars. It is precisely for this reason that Sasha and Maryna were able to keenly sense the "unusual" atmosphere within their Chinese tea experience.
Cultural exchange often begins with curiosity and matures into empathy. In this interview, tea served as a cross-border bond. For the two Belarusian girls, this experience not only helped them understand the subtlety and profoundness of Chinese culture, but also gave them a new topic to bring back home. More importantly, their very act of sharing is part of cultural mutual learning—through their voices, Chinese tea culture is quietly reaching a wider world.
Truly effective cultural transmission is never a simple exchange of words but a dialogue that touches the soul. The journey from "drinking tea" to "understanding tea," and then to "willingly sharing tea," perfectly illustrates the path of civilizational exchange. A single cup of tea allows the world to see China and China to see the world. This type of exchange, though subtle, can plant seeds of understanding and friendship in the hearts of young people. In the future, when these seeds sprout, they will grow into cross-border understanding and empathy. Through their personal experiences, they make abstract cultural concepts tangible, giving depth to life to the mutual learning between cultures.
One tea, one world; one flavor, one life. When individuals embrace a foreign culture with sincerity, they naturally become natural ambassadors for civilizational dialogue. They show us that mutual learning among civilizations is not about eliminating differences, but about allowing different civilizations to radiate with new splendor through the process of understanding these differences. We hope that more cultural ambassadors like Sasha and Maryna will come to China, pluck a wisp of its tea fragrance, and let stories about China go out into the world. As the scent of tea crosses borders and stories are passed down through generations, human civilization is continuously renewed through such sincere exchanges. Sasha and Maryna's experience tells us that mutual learning among civilizations is not a distant grand narrative, but starts with every authentic perception and sharing. It is these small but real moments that form the new chapter of civilization written together by all of us.