There are themes that continue to rise though this year, and coffee is one of them.
Coffee in Norway it is dark, bitter and never ending at home on rainy mornings. There are no coffee cafes, it is something you enjoy from a thermos picking berries or around the fire with friends at home.
Coffee in Croatia, not really a beverage, it is an event, a way of being. “Getting a coffee” more means a minimum two hour event. It is never “to go.” “Getting coffee” is a daily ritual of life and a medium by which all of life events take place. You go to “have coffee” if you date, break up, have a work meeting, talk to your family. It is done in the public squares, never alone and never with a computer. It is always an impossibly small cup, that Croatians have the amazing ability to make last hours. When the tourists leave, the only places that stay open are the coffee shops, which then serve wine and beer at night.
Singapore. There is a beautiful efficiency of Singapore, and with the highly sugared iced coffee that is everywhere, Kopi-O, seemed to fit the city perfectly. Kopi-o is coffee made through a fancy sock filter and with as much sugar as you can get to dissolve. If you want it cold and to go, it is poured over ice, tied together with a rubber run and straw was a perfect companion to, well anything: a hot walk, spicy Indian curry, chicken rice or beef satay and the perfect answer to jet lag. It was also the land of selfies - while we never did, you can get your selfie printed on the foam of your latte at the famous “Selfie Coffee” shop.
Malaysia: Penang white coffee. Now in Malaysia, the coffee grows in the surrounding hills and every corner has another “white coffee” stand often with street vendor or two. A drink for any time of the day this more milk than coffee version of coffee has me yawning in the afternoon but longing to find out more about the history. It is also a place where labor is cheap so people send time on things, like 3D foam creations in your coffee.
More adventures are sure to come, but grateful for the warm cup of joe in mornings.
I asked for a “coffee with cream” and learned the magic of Croatia: cream = whipped cream!
This fun sign in Penang summarized about how I feel after finding a good cup of joe!
Someone had a hard time getting used to coffee size in Croatia.
Checking out the #Selfie Coffee stand in Singapore
Making the wonderful sock coffee to go.
Getting breakfast for the girls with our coffee to go.