One of my biggest worries always while traveling is coffee. I like to know I have a way of making for myself a cup before my day starts. To tell you the truth, I enjoy having my coffee in my sleep clothes, hair disheveled, face unwashed. I don't like having to greet the world before I've had my coffee, so generally am not a fan of going out to cafes for my breakfast when I can have it at accommodation.
So always, while traveling, I go through these laborious calculations - how long am I on the road? Is it worth bringing a pack of coffee with me or should I just trust the road? Will I have to go without caffeine, and will that become perilous for bystanders? Is there room in my bag for the moka pot?
(Spoiler alert: there seldom is.)
So generally, I try to book apartments and Airbnbs, since I enjoy that ability. I tend to look at the listing and plan ahead. And while I'm not pretentious about accommodation, coffee is a non-negotiable.
It just so happens I've booked one of the single, coolest AirBnBs ever for my stay in Graz. Very geeky and sci-fi, very up my alley. As a bonus, it also happens to be the actual home (or perhaps previous home, I'm not sure) of the owners, so it's much better stocked than your basic Ikea-furnished rental.
Besides, with cool mugs like these, why even bother going to a cafe?
Anyway, I arrived in the city late and after dark, so didn't get to create much of an impression about the place. I was exhausted anyway, so maybe my impression wouldn't have been so friendly.
Which led to my making impressions on the first morning. Lucky me. I went scrounging for coffee through the many hectic cupboards. They have one of those espresso machines, but I'm not so keen. Besides, I had my heart set on this huge R2D2 mug. Just think how many espressos would've been necessary to fill that.
Luckily, I discovered a container of kaffee and a pan and went about making my coffee the old-fashioned way, by boiling and stirring continually. It's the coffee of childhood. Before we knew of moka pots and espresso machines and French presses, this was how you made coffee. I love it still when I go visit someone, to sit with them in the kitchen while they prepare our coffee this way. It's very intimate. Little things, eh.
I then took my coffee out onto the balcony, and had my first proper encounter with the city. And what a stunning view. I'm not used to mountains. I don't often go since you seldom encounter beaches there. But with the sun high, the days warm and a huge coffee in hand, I reckon they're not so bad at all.
Luckily it's early, and the Creator Days aren't starting for a while. I think I'll sit here and listen to some tunes. And the birds. Maybe read a bit. Maybe scrounge up some pancakes.
It's done me good, having these two trips back to back. I'd forgotten the subtle resilience of the road, the way it makes you less bothered by petty things, the feeling of anything might happen. I missed it.
