Under the fig tree?

Today is the feast of St Bartholomew...

The gospel of the day, from John's first chapter, reads...

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, "Here is a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him." Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree." Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel." Jesus answered and said to him, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this." And he said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

I always thought that there was something not right with this passage. When Jesus says to Bartholomew that he saw him under the fig tree, the latter responds, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."  What and where is the connection between the two statements. Most probably the authors missed out a portion of the conversation here.  Or that's what I thought.  Only today did I come to know that the phrase 'under the fig tree' in Jewish tradition meant someone was a scripture scholar, or atleast someone very interested and immersed in studying the Torah or Pentateuch. That explains Bartholomew's profession of faith to Jesus.  And it has nothing to do with the fig tree!