Although the tradition of drinking tea dates back to more than 3,000 B.C. in China, it was not until the mid 17th century in the UK that appeared the concept of "afternoon tea". The dinner time then was popularly late at 8 pm, so a Duchess developed a habit of inviting Mends to enjoy some cakes at 4 pm in the afternoon. Quickly, afternoon tea became a fashionable social event. With the cultural exchanges between the east and the west deepening, this British tradition was gradually in-traduced into China. Now, afternoon tea is increasingly popular in China, especially in the area ol Guangdong and Fijian provinces.