Attention Coffee Lovers- There's a New Kid In Town!

Machta Tea & Lattes

Us Irish are known for loving a good owl cuppa, it's the remedy for almost everything! A cold, a broken heart or even a fight with a friend.

What if I told you there's a new type of tea/coffee on the scene that offers you 137 times the amount of antioxidants than your regular cup of green tea? It goes by the name of 'Machta'...

 And with the new 'health buzz' which seems to be the 'in' thing these days it's no wonder it's become so popular in Ireland. Kaph on Drury street is said to sell 300 machtas a week!

Machta Latte

Machta was first used in Japan by Monks who needed to remain calm but focused throughout their day of meditation.

 It's high in L-Theanine, which is an amino acid that actually promotes relaxation and well-being AND improves the brains functioning. It is the highest quality powdered green tea available.

When you drink Matcha tea you take in the whole leaf not just diluted water like green tea. It has also been nicknamed the 'natural cocaine' because it gives you SIX hours of energy, similar to coffee without the jitters and crash afterwards. 

 Some of the benefits of Machta Include:

1. ·Stress Relief 
2. ·Natural Energy Boost
3. ·Fortifies the Immune System
4. ·Fights against viruses and bacteria
5. ·Rich in fiber
6. ·High in antioxidants
7. ·Boosts metabolism
8. ·Enhances Calm
9. ·Boosts Memory and Concentration
10. ·Detoxifies the Body

In Japan they add it into everything, including KIT-KATS!! It’s probably not long before those magic kit-kats make their way over to us in Europe!

 My Experience 

After hearing about this magic new coffee I decided to buy a Machta Latte from Póg on Bachelors Walk during my lunch break! I am a self-confessed coffee addict and couldn't wait to try it out. I was expecting a coffee taste but it tasted nothing like coffee lol It didn't taste like green tea either which is a good thing in my eyes because I’m not a big fan of the taste green tea! It reminded me of warm milk as it had just the right amount of sweetness. I wouldn't say it was 'bad' but it was different. I did feel really, REALLY awake for the day like I had an unlimited supply of energy and I was even more excitable and giddy than usual. It was nice but just not what I was expecting. I would probably need to try it again to 100% know fo shizzle if I like it.

You can also make your own Machta tea at home by buying supplies from most health shops but it's kinda pricey which is why most people just buy it in cafés. 

Make your own Machta Tea

These are some places I know of in Dublin that sell it:

·Kaph - South Inner City 31 Drury Street, Dublin 2
·Oolong Flower Power Tea Shop - South Inner City, 4 Stephen Street Lower, Dublin 2
·Tea Garden -North Inner City, 7 Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin 1
·Oya Café- 7 A Richmond Street South, Dublin 2
·KC Peaches - South Inner City, 2829 Nassau Street,Dublin 2
·Cracked Nut - 71 Camden Street, Dublin 2
·Póg - North Inner City, 32 Bachelors Walk, Dublin

Laughter Yoga- Trying Something New

What better way to spend a bank holiday Monday then going to a laughter yoga class with some friends (one of whom being the lovely Sarah  Scott from the blog beauty blunders and other wonders http://bit.ly/1pZNj1X )!

I heard about laughter yoga a few months ago and since I love laughing and do some yoga in college I thought sure why not?

I got an app on my phone called 'MeetUp' which allows you to join groups full of people that have the same interests such as yoga, irish dancing, photography... everything really! I joined the laughter yoga group and when I seen there was some spaces left in one of the classes I jumped at the opportunity.

 At the start of the summer I made a mini bucket list called '20 before 20' and laughter yoga was one of things on it that I wanted to try out. All signs were encouraging me to get out there and try it so I invited some friends and off we went.

I didn't know what to expect but threw myself into all the activities and made the most of it.

When we got there people were sitting around in a circle, kinda awkwardly at the start as a lot of us were new to the experience. When everyone was ready Sharyn (the laughter master) talked a little about laughter yoga. The word yoga means to unite which was lovely to think about during the class that no matter what each individuals circumstance was outside that room that we were all there in that moment for the same reason, to laugh! 
She explained that we would be doing about 20 different exercises, not exercises like the gym now but more like fun activites lol. We had to go up to people and shake their hand while laughing in their face, greet and hug each other as if we were long lost friends, pretend to be zoo animals the list goes on... After about 40 minutes we did a laughter meditation which involved lying around in a circle waiting for our laughter to happen. 

'Fake it till you make it'
At the start we were kind of pretending to laugh (well I was anyways) because laughter encourages more laughter, but by the end when I let go a bit more and actually thought about how funny we all must look the laughter kept coming. Afterwards my face hurt from smiling so much, I felt lighter nearly and much more chilled out. It was a nice feeling:)

Check out their website for cool facts and more about laughter yoga:
 http://www.laughteryogadublin.ie/about.php

I don't think it would be for everyone but I liked it and I'm glad I gave it ago. It wasn't anything like your normal day circumstances and was nice to just let go and not take things so serious (not that I do anyways) for the hour.

So if you're looking to let go, try something new, get out of your comfort zone and possibly have a laugh then I really recommend it!

The class runs the 1st Monday of every month in The Harvest Moon Centre on Lower Baggot Street, Dubin and it's 7 euro.

The adventure never stops lol until next time...

xx

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