In the first episode of this short series I wrote about the Dutch’ drinking liters of coffee each week. What about other nationalities?
Not only the Dutch but also the Germans drink a lot of coffee. But even more is drunk by the Scandinavians who probably have hard times staying awake during the dark winter nights.
Coffee is treated with more respect as you are going more south. The French, Spanish, Portugues and Italians have more traditions and habits towards the consumption of the black liquid. They will have a cappuccino for breakfast and something like a machiatto or a cortado (depending on the country you’re in) when you have a hard time waking up. After lunch or dinner they have a strong espresso to finish of the meal one just had. And maybe in between some coffee with friends or colleagues for an informal chat or a break from work.
In African and Asian countries coffee is a way to take a break of all-day-life. Here even more rituals are involved than we see in the south of Europe. The coffee is made slowly and usually very strong. Because it takes some time to prepare it and it is an expensive product which doesn’t help you to stop your thirst, they do not drink it a lot.
After America coffee gets a more important role in (urban) streetlife in more and more countries. Coffee shops pop-up everywhere. From big airports to cozy streets in medieval cities. People use it to meet, relax or work. The liquid helps you to wake up, to take a breath at busy moments and is a perfect way to get into contact with others.
And actually that is what coffee is doing all over the world. No matter whether you are a coffee picker in the humid south or an office clerk on the 20th floor of a New York skyscraper, coffee will help you and all the drinkers with you through the day!
