Coffee that comes from the Land Down Under

by Alex Hawkins

G’day, mates! It’s your friendly, neighborhood Alex back again for another round of coffee! My next post comes from one of my friends who I have had the pleasure of having in some of my classes here at Lipscomb. Not to mention, she reads my posts every week.

Annie is a nursing major from Chicago, Illinois, and also a coffee appreciator like me. She’s a great friend and also does not mind (most of the time) that I drag her with me around Nashville. In the winter of 2017, she had the opportunity to visit her cousins in Melbourne, Australia, and she was introduced to this local Melburnian coffee shop in her travels.

Photo from TripAdvisor

“Dark Horse on the Brit was the place my cousins would take me every morning before we would explore the rest of Melbourne,” said Annie. “It was always packed! I never knew that you could pack that many people into a small space in the strip mall. The environment is very family and pet-friendly. I loved seeing all the dogs with their owners in the morning.”

Photo from TripAdvisor

Annie was telling me that her favorite drink from Dark Horse on the Brit was a plain cappuccino. She said that it tasted milkier and creamier than the Starbucks version she gets from her local Starbucks. Not to mention, it also serves really good food. Why are most things that we love to eat or drink always better is another country?

“I flew 22 hours for a cup of coffee…and to see my cousins.”

So, friends (or should I say “mates”?), if you have a favorite coffee shop, and tell me all about it. It might get put up on here if you leave it in the comments below! Also, if you wouldn’t mind doing the poll below so I know what you guys want me to for the next post. It would be greatly appreciated!

Until next time…Keep it kinda classy!

Why traveling is a must.

by Alex Hawkins

When coming up with ideas for a new topic, I realized that I haven’t done a life experience, and this blog is about life experiences and coffee. I thought to myself, “Let’s do a life experience this week.” As a world traveler, I have experienced beautiful cultures and people wherever I have gone. There are so many things to do, sights to see and people to meet anywhere one goes, but one of my favorite places that I have been to was Costa Rica.

Fortunately, it was a twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I got to experience. Not only did I drink some of the greatest coffee in the world, but I also learned that experiencing other cultures opens up your heart and mind to things that some people don’t ever get to experience.

Both times I went to Costa Rica, I wasn’t aware of how lucky I was to be able to experience a sliver of Central American culture that only a few people get to see. I got to experience the tourist aspect along with experiencing the local aspect of the country.

On the weekends, we would go to big tourist places such as Arenal Volcano, Manuel Antonio National Parkand Isla Tortuga. While during the week, we would spend four hours in school and the rest of the of the time looking for local hideouts such as Mercado Central.

Sloth at Manuel Antonio National Park
El Mercado Central, San Jose, Costa Rica

The lesson I learned from going to Costa Rica was to live, love and incorporate.

Live the local lifestyle. Go out and have fun with the locals because sometimes the best dance instructors are the random people dancing to the music in the streets.

Love the people and the food. The locals know some of the best places to eat, even if they are in some of the sketchiest places you will ever go to.

Learn how to incorporate what you did or saw into your everyday life. Going to Costa Rica showed me that patience really is a virtue. The people there have a saying that they use for almost anything, “Pura Vida” or “pure life.” I saw how relaxed and content the locals were, and I wanted to incorporate that into my own life.

“Order, pay, relax here”

If you have the opportunity to travel, take it because there are so many lessons that can be learned from the locals there. So, if you have experienced another country, I’d love to hear about where you went in the comments below. Until next time…Keep it kinda classy!

Ohio coffee? Let’s go!

by Alex Hawkins

When I was deciding if I wanted to pursue a communications minor, I spent a lot of time thinking about how I could incorporate that with a biology degree. I needed to talk about it with someone who had some experience in the field, so naturally, I went to my RA who, conveniently, is a journalism major. Thanks to Olivia, I am now a communications minor and am now sharing about her favorite coffee shop to share with you guys.

The Coffee Peddlar

My awesome RA was telling me about this local coffee shop in her Ohio hometown of Harrison called The Coffee Peddlar. It’s in downtown Harrison and has a really cute storefront. It is a community-oriented coffee shop where the baristas know who you are and what you what to drink. I’m also told that it has some inspirational quotes and interesting drawings on its chalkboard.

“It’s a fun place to hang out,” said Olivia. “I would meet my friends there and we would study there, or we would grab something to drink and just talk. My favorite thing to order there is the frozen hot chocolate, even if it cost me $5 for a cup.”

The Coffee Peddlar doesn’t just specialize in coffee, but also hosts local art shows and will occasionally have a live musician. Olivia also tells me that the coffee shop celebrates “national pajama day,” when everyone who wears their pajamas to the coffee house will get a free cup of coffee.

Thanks, Olivia, for sharing your favorite coffee shop with me even though you don’t drink coffee! If you have a secret coffee house that you like to go to, tell me all about it! Tell me what your favorite drink is and where to find it too. Also, a little thought for fun, if someone narrated your life, who would you want to narrate it? Until next time… Keep it kinda classy!