TOUR DE COFFEE: Wakey uppy juice, A cup of the good stuff!

Today, this hilarious video motivated me to get around to writing a post on coffee. 

“I'm trying to de-wank my coffee so i'll just have an International Roast. You know that powdery, instant coffee that comes in a big white tin." Kitty Flanagan on ABC's The Weekly


Currently Rob and I are enjoying coffee in Santander. One reason we are glad we chose to spend a month here, is they have a great cafe culture. It came at a time when we were really wishing we could walk down the street and simply "be" at a Melbourne cafe, even a snobby one! 

Before leaving for our trip I had a GRAND PLAN to do away with coffee for a year. Or, at least, to reduce my reliance on my morning coffee. 

This failed miserably. 


Leading up to our adventure was a very busy period that involved goodbyes (over coffee), alertness to move/sell/pack (cue caffeine), Christmas and New Years (hourly offers of coffee) and the grand event of a wedding weekend (a certain coffee scenario). 

Gilmore girls coffee-ism

It wasn't just that I kept my coffee habit way into the New Year as we inched closer to our departure date, but also that before we knew it, we were in Vietnam. The cafe culture in Vietnam is really like no other. I would live to take this moment to lay almost all of the blame the country for continuing my reliance on coffee! (This is probably more a compliment than anything else.)

...and so began our 

TOUR OF COFFEE!

Our coffee and cafe passion/habit has created a huge dent in our budget but I think it has been worth it. It is has been truly fascinating seeing just how different coffee is perceived in different places and how variable the cafe experience can be. We have found it surprisingly hard to predict when a "good" coffee will be served and when it won't. Our tastes have also evolved and we have realised just how much of a Melbourne-centric view of what makes a coffee good. 

Malaysia
Our first destination is certainly more hazy in my mind than other places. Adjusting to the humidity, trying not to get lost in our first country and still faintly clinging onto the notion of giving up the drink, coffee was not top-of-mind in Malaysia. I have previously tried the infamous Kopi Luwak (coffee cherries eaten and defaecated by a civet) which is mainly found in Indonesia but I also spotted it in Malaysia and Vietnam.

In Kuala Lumpur we did try something new (and hideously over-priced even by Melbourne standards!): coffee ice cubes that melt as you add hot milk.

Not really worth it!

Nepal
Nepal, naturally, was more of a place to sample tea. Outside of the touristy areas, cafes serving espresso coffee are scarce. Since Rob was last there in 2009, the expansion of cafes is astronomical because coffee machines now exist. Well, they might have been there but he didn't notice because it would not have occurred to him to buy a latte back then!

The tourist cafes ranged dramatically and you could not rely on first impressions! Of course, it is pretty amazing, and kind of outrageous I suppose, that a country battling with massive weather challenges, poverty, vast electricity restrictions and a range of other issues has any of these cafes at all. Our best coffee was probably at Himalayan Java (the Starbucks of Nepal) in Thamel.

Latte art! 

Lady selling Nescafes in Durbar Square

Cambodia 

Cambodia was really more about continuing my love affair with mango shakes/juice/smoothies but we did sample a few lattes. Importantly, we got the teeniest cutest take-away coffee you have ever seen!

Baby coffee for the bus

Phnom Penh latte

Vietnam's Ca Phe
Ca phe is serious business in Vietnam. Having spent a month in Ho Chi Minh, we tried to sample the dizzying array of styles. The big Vietnamese coffee chain, Trung Nguyen Coffee, has a multiple page coffee menu offering everything under the sun. Trung Nguyen are everywhere but that doesn't mean there aren't a multitude of other cafes. (Quite like Melbourne!) 

Rob and Ann at ca phe time!

What initially makes the cafe experience in Vietnamese unique is that often the coffee is brewed slowly at your table using a gravity drip system. Even at the most basic cafes your coffee choice involved numerous factors: black, white, hot, cold, ice cubes, milk, condensed milk, ice cream, etc. The beans are from everywhere, including Vietnam. It took us awhile to get our heads around the concept of having ice with a hot beverage. The best thing about the cafe culture in Vietnam is also probably the highlight of many aspects of the country: the community atmosphere on the streets.   

We actually failed to take many photos of our coffee experiences but I did capture Rob having coffee on the Mekong so that's something! 

Ca phe sau on the Mekong!

French Quarter cafe in Hanoi (note the mopeds outside)

China
Finding ourselves in another country famous for its tea and tea rituals, we didn't have many expectations for China. However, we had recently left Vietnam so caffeine was not optional at this point! We got by with instant and 3-in-1 packets (better than nothing!) for much of the time. When we splashed out on a tourist coffee (priced as such), it was hit-or-miss. This was kind of a let-down as when we did buy it, we saw it as a luxury. 

Drinking Beijing yoghurt was really a better
idea! (On the street so you could recycle the jar.)

Not all coffee was targeted at tourists. We have to give an honourable mention to the Guang Zhou cafe: One Dollar Coffee which did not, in fact, provide $1 coffee. It did provide a huge coffee that I would not recommend. 

Looks a lot like Starbucks!

In Beijing, Sarah, Rob and I visited a cafe with a great set-up overlooking a garden. It would have fit right in at home. When we were there it was absolutely dead and I wonder how viable it will be into the future.

Japan
Oh Japan! ...I don't want to say anything bad about you...still....months down the track and many km's down the road. However, coffee is not always your strong suit. A bit unfair to say when tea is obviously the priority. (Viewing a tea ceremony in Kyoto was a beautiful, tranquil experience.) 

In an exception to the rule, in Kyoto I searched the net for a cafe with good coffee being the sole criteria. I came across a cafe with coffee that an Australian tourist promised would transport me to Melbourne*. Vermillion Espresso Bar almost got there! Rob was even confident enough to order a soy latte. This has been extremely rare!

Kyoto for coffee

Kat's sideways latte

Rob's sideways SOY latte

* Whilst writing this post I found out that the barristas/owners lived in Melbourne for many years. They say that they drew their inspiration for the cafe from Melbourne. Uh huh! 


Mongolia
We didn't have high expectations for Mongolia but inside the capital we were most pleasantly surprised. Ullan Bataar seemed to have its own unique style of cafe culture going on. Possibly it is due to the boom times of recent years, but whatever the reason, we benefited. In UB we did a fair bit of planning and I did some work so it was great to have a plethora of cafes to choose from each day! We even had a Luke's! (For those not in the know: "LUKE'S" a homey cafe; your local; the place you want to be in the morning for your cup of joe! Origin: Gilmore Girls)

This was not the best UB had to offer but not too bad!

Finland
Excited to be entering a new continent full of coffee potential, but wary of the Northern Euro price tag, Rob and I found ourselves at our first European stop: Helsinki. Initially bursting with joy at the sight of outdoor cafes and European squares, I could hardly contain myself. Then I found the Finnish knew the way to my heart: a small chocolate on my coffee saucer.

Danger: Fairly consistent chocolate
accompaniment! Pretty good coffee.

Bearded Rob and Oliver at Robert's Coffee
Chain Cafe- they were everywhere!

You might think that was the end of it. That once in Europe life was a coffee dream. No, not quite! You see, I do prefer a cafe latte and, obviously, milk isn't really the way in most of Europe. So I have been switching it up, an espresso here, a cafe latte there. Apparently there is a Parisian cafe that serves Flat White's now! 

Ireland
During our road trip of Ireland we found the coffee to vary greatly. Our first Irish coffee (actually invented for tourists apparently) was absolutely horrible. Not at all what Mum had remembered from the past. Luckily those that followed were better. 

The best part coffee-wise in Ireland for me was that Mum gave Rob and I Keep Cups! (From an Australian company but sold in Dublin!) They have been brilliant, especially whilst we were on the road in Ireland and then on our various camping expeditions.

On the "interesting" side...

Keep cup coffee!

Mum with her Irish coffee!

Scotland
Still flummoxed at my discovery that "Lemon, lime and bitters" is not a drink found commonly in the UK (or Ireland) but actually a beverage of Australia invention, I took awhile to assess the coffee landscape in Scotland! When I did, I found some great coffees and some average ones. 

One of the better coffees was at Loch Lomond at Cafe Street Mocha or maybe I was influenced by the clever handle at the entrance!

Loved this door handle 

Latte art! A side of toffee!

The Netherlands
We were welcomed to the Netherlands by a sunny street-side picnic lunch and coffee with my friend Ilir and his housemate, Jackie. A fantastic way to kick off our time in a beautiful country....until Jackie mentioned that he had his coffee with milk- "the WEAK way". Thus we were welcomed to mainland Europe! Really, it was about this time that I put a bit of extra effort into embracing the espresso. (Rob was ahead of me on this one!) Regardless, I did have some good lattes in the Netherlands and not much beats a coffee on a pretty canal in Utrecht.

A cycling pit-stop for coffee

Mini stroop waffle!

Coffee along the canal

France
During our first half of our short time in France we were spoilt by relatives, in all ways including coffee! We weren't in France long enough to visit a huge amount of cafes however, given the fact that we sought out the French quarters in many other cities does give some indication of what we expect from French cafes. (Refer to Vietnam above for example.) That said, we had an absolutely disgusting coffee in Montmartre!  

In Bordeaux we visited the Medoc region for a chateau tour. Apart from the wine tastings we were presented with a beautiful picnic that included a great coffee and the regions celebrated Caneles de Bordeaux. 

Bordeaux style

Spain
So far Spain is right up there in the coffee stakes! Not only is the espresso good but they make a great cafe con leche- finally I've hit the jackpot. The price tag is also much more condusive with our coffee habits. So far my favourite cafe is el museo de la musica which perhaps doesn't really sound like a cafe at all. I actually want to eat here at some point.

First coffee in Santander

"TAKE-AWAY" POINTS

• You really can't really generalise about a country's coffee: surprises abound
• Noone seems to serve coffees in latte glasses like at home! 
• We are coffee snobs...but only a little bit. Nothing gets in the way of us and caffeine, even a lack of latte art or a 3-in-1 packet.
• Coffee is an adventure!

Sunset and Sunrise Mission 2015! (Part 2)

Welcome to part 2 of my 2015 Sunset and Sunrise Mission! Click here if you missed part one.

To recap, the aim is to see a sunrise or sunset in every country we visit. This installment includes China, Japan, Mongolia, Finland and Estonia:

China
I like this photo less for the sunset than the reminder of the fun day Sarah, Rob and I had at the Summer Palace in Beijing. The scale of the Summer Palace is really impressive and there is so many different areas to explore. 

Japan
I was pretty unhappy with my Japan efforts. We never seemed to be at the right place at the right time to capture a sunset or sunrise. Nevertheless, I did see this sunset from a Takayama bridge one evening.

Mongolia
Mongolia certainly took commitment as the days were very long. In fact, we left just before summer solstice so they were some of the longest of the year. The sun would set around 11pm and rise so early that I have blocked out the time.

Here are three sunsets we enjoyed most and one sunrise:

Stormy Gobi sunset

Gobi goat meeting at sunset

Sunset friend in the Gobi

Lake Khuvsgal sunrise 

Estonia
The beautiful city of Tallinn at the beginning of a sunset. 

Fairytale

Finland
The only Finnish sunset that I photographed was on our very last night in Helsinki. Basically I remembered my mission and ran downstairs in my pyjamas to capture a tram in the sunset. A flatter road and this could be somewhere in St Kilda.

Melbourne or Finland?

Part II - The Execution - Entering Mongolia

The Execution

Of course, there are plans, and then there is what happened.  Here's how we did the trip the "fun" way.

In the end, while the experience was challenging, we did it our own way.  We made it with a sense of achievement, great memories, and having met good people (one of whom I almost poisoned with some disgusting Chinese rice wine) and for a significantly lower cost than buying direct train tickets through CITS. 

The Bus Station - Muxiyuan

Starting by getting lost lost on the way to Muxiyuan Long Distance Bus Station in Beijing, we engaged help of a lady out shopping and a street cleaner who entered into a 5-10 minute debate on which way is the fastest way to the bus terminal.

The Bus

Due to the fact you cannot book the bus and they don't formally sell tickets for this trip from the actual ticket windows at Muxiyuan, we wandered about the back bus park trying to find a red bus and match up the characters on the business card we picked up from 365 Inn.  

Upon finding the bus a dramatic scene ensued where for about 5 minutes, I was trying to speak basic levels of incomprehensible Mandarin to the driver until I realised that he was a Mongolian at which point in time I switched to Mongolian which was so bad he got a passenger to start talking to me in Mon-glish.  With many hand gestures, shouts and good natured laughs we discovered that the bus was full.

With hands up in an "I surrender" gesture, the driver told us to wait; what for we had no idea, but wait we did.  Within 10 minutes, a new Mongolian man arrived and escorted us to strange new bus park hidden behind a warehouse, as we wondered the whole time, "should we be doing this?", we desperately tried to track our location using the GPS in Kat's iPhone.

Despite the new Mongolian man assuring us that the bus would go to Zamin-Uud, we learned from the new driver that the bus was not going to Zamin-Uud but to Erlian.  Upon receiving multiple assurances via hand gesture that we would truly be able to get to Zamin-Uud one way or another, we bought tickets to Erlian (for a little cheaper than we had expected for Zamin-Uud).

Told that the bus was leaving at 4.30pm, we grabbed lunch and patiently waited.  At about 5pm, it became apparent that the passengers were not the most important cargo but instead the black plastic bags with duct tape were; and boy is duct tape a hot commodity.  Not only can it be used for taping things up, but for security, patching holes and for making handles!

Comfy bus cots (assuming you are no taller than 5 feet)

Settling in for a long night on the bus

At 6pm, the packing continued, and in such a way as to make any holiday maker cringe.  We never got to the bottom of why it took them so long but it seemed to have something to do with the guy doing the packing waiting for instructions, and the guy giving the instructions not knowing that was his role.  By 6.30pm we were definitely on our way (to a traffic jam). A plus was driving right past different sections of the Great Wall as the sun went down. It isn't every day that you get a surprise Great Wall at sunset moment!

Never far from a misunderstanding, our dinner consisted of a hot chocolate (and not the expected instant noodles!) and some sugary buns.

When noodles become hot chocolate!

At 3.30am, I woke up to discover that the bus is parked on the side of the highway and the driver was asleep in one of the cots!  With no one else surprised or seemingly disturbed, I rolled over and went back to sleep.  Kat later confirmed that the bus had been parked since around 1am. At 6.30 we pushed on for arrival at Erlian by 7am. Determined not to be influenced by touts, and yet quickly realising that's the only choice we had to get anywhere, we accepted the services of a man who would take us to Zamin-Uud.  At 7.10am we arrived at his hotel where we would "rest" until 10am when the jeep would come to take us over the border.  Haha, for a small 10 yuan, we didn't complain as it presented the opportunity to have a shower and a coffee.

The Jeep

On the jeep journey to Zamin-Uud, we again realised that we were not the most important cargo, with the team taking at least an hour to pack more black plastic bags secured with duct tape into the ancient Russian jeep.  "Stacking" four passengers into a space for one brought its own laughs, and we came to know some new travel companions, Ocka and her brother Perov, Mongolians who had been holidaying in China.

Passing through some Chinese armed guard checkpoints, we were instructed to get out and walk through Chinese border control.  The driver kept our bags and promised (I suppose) to meet us on the other side.  Luckily we had Ocka to help as she spoke English pretty well.

Now was time for the old switcheroo.  In order to avoid paying for an additional visa, I was leaving China on my Australian passport but entering Mongolia on my British one (there's a HUGE list of nationalities from which Mongolia does not require a visa until 1 Jan 2016, Australian is not one of them).  I had been quite nervous about the switch, but there was no reason to be, there's a big space between China and Mongolia, and the Mongolian border official took no time at all and didn't even blink at the fact my British passport had zero stamps in it.

BIG TIP!  If you are doing this trip, the driver takes much longer at Mongolian border control than China, there's a cafe/lounge area upstairs where you can buy lunch, snacks and drinks and go to the toilet - you would never know because it is not signposted.  We spent a half an hour here sharing some food and a coffee with Ocka and Perov, and learned a little more about them.

With a bit more shoving and pushing amongst the black plastic bags, we were dropped nearby the Zamin-Uud train station.  This wikiTravel post gives good instructions on where to go to buy train tickets.  We bought ourselves tickets in the same berth/cabin/koupe as Ocka and Perov and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon doing some grocery shopping and picking up a SIM card, until train departure time. 

The Train

All aboard!

Inside the train - hard sleeper car

Our hard sleeper berth was tight but not uncomfortable and you could securely store bags underneath the bottom bunk (someone would have to lift you off it to get at them!) with space above for less valuable things.  Ocka was fairly quickly asleep, but we took the opportunity to take in the VERY late sunset while Perov played cards with the boys in the berth adjacent.

Settling in for a(nother) long journey

Our stewardesses, in two minds about being photographed

Wood powered boiling water

Perov, Ocka and Kat in our shared "hard sleeper"

Just after I had rocked off to sleep amidst the clackity-clack, I was woken to insistent tapping on my hip.  All I could think was "it's finally happened!  I'm being mugged!", I turned to see Perov's smiling face.  With a tray in one hand and a bottle of vodka in the other he said "HORSE!" and rubbed his belly.  He had bought some horse-meat with potato and 3 slices of carrot at the last stop and wanted to share it with me. Perov and I shared in a midnight indulgence of horse-meat washed down with vodka ("makes inside good," Perov says).

HORSE!
Rob and Perov enjoying a moment

The views we enjoyed in the morning were amazing, and I don't think we could have enjoyed the trip any more had we taken the train all the way from Beijing.  It was a really enjoyable (although slightly hair-raising) way of making the journey! This was our very own brand of Trans-Mongolian! 

Our first Bactrian camel

Sunset from the train

Travel dream uniquely realised!