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A P R
09      Double Shot

  Macchiato, Americano, Espresso, Cappuccino, Mochaccino, Café Latté, Café Au Lait, Café Mocha and not to mention, grandé, quad, venti.

I remember the first time was at my uncle’s house in West Java. It was a Kopi Luwak, served steaming hot. I was only thirteen.

During college, when assigments after assignments kept streaming in, that was the time when caffeine claimed its victory on us, the dedicated students. There we were at Maisy’s in Neutral Bay at 11PM every night without fails. Like it was another class we had to attend.

The same four-men-one-girl crowd everytime. The same Cappuccino-in-a-mug-with-choco-on-top order, with a big plate of potato wedges with sour cream and sweet salsa. It was oh-so-good, I can still taste the crispiness of those wedges.

We could have gone to any café, in fact we ended up finding another café nearby Maisy’s, just because they served a nice range of smoothies. But we still sticked to the previous because of its Espresso. After all, the Espresso that made all the Lattés, Cappuccinos taste like heaven. Although I could not imagine if it were to be handled by some lousy barista.

After college, for a few months, a good friend and I still went there frequently. For everytime we had to go to the airport to send somebody off, we could always rely on Maisy’s for a big breakfast and definitely, a mug of Cappuccino, even at some odd hours like 4AM. It was almost like we had lived there.

Then reality kicked in, an auld-lang-syne was exchanged between me and my friends. But, caffeine still ruled among us. At the same time my friends still went to Maisy’s regularly in Sydney, I was constantly in search of the best cup of coffee in the Lion city.

At the end, the best choice was Kopi Tarik from local eateries. However, I managed to juggle between consuming black coffee at Starbucks on Orchard and Spinelli at Heeren. Because those were the two places where my friends and I could have descent cups of coffee without being sweat at the local foodcourts.

Even when I decided to quit regular coffee cold turkey, I still could not resist stepping into a café just to wake up and smell the coffee.

Coffee plays quite an important role in our lives. From all the places that I have been to, there has never been a day passed without a cup of Joe. Makes you wonder what the big woo-ha is. Could it be the taste of coffee beans ground, brewed and perfected to your taste? Could it be the right relationship of coffee and cigarettes? Could it be the environment of the coffee shops? Or could it be the companions that gather at the same place, at the same time having the same cup of something?

For all I know, all of the above could be right. Psychologically speaking, some of us must have coffee in the morning to keep them awake. As for coffee and cigarettes, it has been proven by my smoker friends that caffeine and nicotine walk hand in hand. Would you rather sit in a hot, noisy coffee shop with plastic seats or a nice, cool café with leather sofas for a drink? That is when environment steps in. As for the companions, you can never go wrong with a cup of coffee, nice leather sofas and the people that you enjoy hanging out with.

You do not have to live in a city that never sleeps to taste the certain something that keeps the insomniacs awake. It is your cup, your call.


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