Tag Archives: coffee

Busy and yet…

I have a couple of new series coming up on the blog soon, involving some of our favorite things: coffee, food, and cultural differences/observations.

But for now, here are a few recent pics. We have been quite busy with regular life stuff, and a bit of travel, both work-related and personal. (It seems to be a bit biased toward Daniel, but William is getting to that age where he isn’t so interested in having every aspect of his life documented in pictures!)

Daniel built his own foosball table during a project at school, using recycle materials. We were very impressed!
A certain adorable nephew turned one a few weeks ago. Isn’t he the cutest?
Daniel continues to uncover his passion and talents.

 

The boys got some gifts from family in the states.

 

We continue to work on our sushi skills.

 

And I finally crocheted something that I will actually wear out into public…

 

which is good, because you never know when winter might sneak up again. We got 17+ inches of snow from last night till this afternoon!

 

Teaching our children important skills, like the art of a pour-over… yes, we do love coffee!

 

November. So.Very.Dark

We had heard that November can be the toughest month living in Norway. And as we endure make it through experience our second November here, I have to agree.

The days are short. Right now sunrise is around 8:25 AM and currently sunset is at 3:45 (15:45) in the afternoon.
The [lack of] daylight is not really a problem once it is colder, because then we have a good chance of having some snow. And snow helps brighten things up. But lately our high temperature has hovered around 5 C (41F), without much of a dip at night. Add to that the fact that it has rained almost nonstop for at least the last two weeks, and it can be a little depressing.
But then again, chilly wet weather in November means
~more opportunities for coffee and hot chocolate
~more chances to slow down and just chill a bit
~Christmas isn’t too far off! We are beginning to see signs of the holiday season in our city.And November also means Thanksgiving, and my (Jenn’s) birthday…

And occasionally other fun surprises. (Stay tuned)

So even though it isn’t the most glamorous month, maybe November isn’t so bad after all!
Lights in the city – this was around
4:30 in the afternoon two weeks ago!

 

Celebrating my birthday with friends – fun!

Art with Heart

We asked (challenged?) our friend Lizz to create something original for our kitchen. We gave her an idea of size and said we wanted it to somehow involve coffee. And that was about it! But wow, did she ever take an idea and run with it…

Tonight, we went by and picked up our new piece. And we are incredibly pleased with and excited about the finished product. We rushed straight home and hung it up!
Isn’t it fantastic? And the photos only give you a glimpse of it. Seeing it in person is an entirely different experience.If you take a closer look, you will see that she incorporated a lot of aspects that suit us and our personalities really well. In fact, she used grounds from Zack’s favorite beans to spell out coffee near the top left. And my lip prints can be found on a couple of the mugs. So cool!

If you are in Norway and are interested in seeing more of Lizz’s work, just let us know and we will be glad to connect you!

 

Real Life

Some days the expat life is great. Other days it can be a struggle.But a couple of recent days stand out as days where I have to pinch myself to be certain this is real life.

Out doing some work in our neighboring city, Tønsberg

 

Coffee and conversation with a local friend

 

Coffee Culture: Stockholm

We returned from Stockholm on Saturday, after several days spent enjoying the city. The weather was cooler than it has been here, but we were just glad we didn’t have to deal with rain until we started driving home.
As is standard for any trip for Zack and me, we had to check out a few coffee shops around town. Have you ever heard the Swedish word fika? It’s brilliant – it’s basically a coffee break, and often includes something sweet as well. It can be used as a noun, a verb, and more – Wikipedia says fika is a Swedish social institution. I love it!
We were staying on Södermalm (thanks to friends who offered their apartment while they were out of town!), an island district in central Stockholm. Södermalm is a trendy bohemian-type community – much cooler than we are – and a great place for people watching, shopping, and finding an excellent cup of coffee.
We got recommendations from friends in the area on what they had either heard or personally considered to be the best shops. A few Google searches confirmed what they shared, letting us know we needed to make a trip to two places in particular, both on Södermalm.

Up first was Drop Coffee. Simplistic and unassuming, I would likely have overlooked it had it not been for the tip. Aside from the fact that there are a number of places to sit in the cafe, it really reminded me of Tim Wendelboe in Oslo (good luck finding a seat at Tim’s!). I ordered an Ethiopian roast, while Zack went with the barista’s suggestion and tried the Kenyan. Both were great – a very light-colored beverage, akin to Wendelboe coffee’s tea-like appearance. But we agreed that the Kenyan was definitely best.

Unfortunately, only one photo from Drop Coffee – the boys were with us 🙂
Next up was Johan & Nyström Konceptbutik. This time, we had a bit of time to ourselves (the boys were with friends), so we were able to relax a bit more. J&N definitely has more to offer in the way of atmosphere. At first glance it doesn’t look very large. But once inside, you’ll find additional seating just past the register, as well as in the upstairs loft area. The baristas were knowledgeable and friendly, and as is the norm for us, we ordered two different roasts, both prepared as a pour-over. This time around, I went with Picknick, and Zack tried the coffee from Nicaragua. And once again, Zack won. Both were nice, but the Nicaraguan was far superior.
We tried a couple of other places as well, including Espresso Bar which has locations throughout the city. Zack said it was the best espresso he’s ever had.
All in all, we were very impressed with the coffee options in Stockholm. While the winner for ambiance goes to J&N, the coffee is what  really matters. And though it was a narrow margin, we both liked Drop the best.

Our neighbors to the East

We are enjoying a short visit to Stockholm. We are spending some time with colleagues, and being tourists as well.
I’ll write more later, but here are a few pics from the phone for now. What a fun city!
The Nordica museum is cool. We visited it last year. If nothing else, it’s worth it to check out the beautiful architecture.
We are always looking for free things to do. The Vasa Museum was not one of them. But if you are going to pay for only one thing, this should be it. Very cool.
One of our favorite things to do in a new city is simply strolling up and down the streets. So many beautiful things to see, and especially on a very mild summer day.
Of course we’ve been checking out coffee shops. Drop Coffee Roasters knows their stuff. Highly recommended.
Another gorgeous view.

 

A kid-free night, thanks to our colleagues! We walked all over Stockholm for a long time. We really enjoy the small streets and shops of Gamla Stan.

P.S. The bracelets are from Agapao Inc. You can check them out and learn more about #loveinaction at http://www.agapaoinc.com.

And you can buy these and other cool Agapao Inc items at http://www.agapaostore.com.

Confessions of a Coffee Addict

We love coffee. We enjoy trying different roasts and checking out different ways of preparing. Zack loves all the gadgets and experimenting with various brewing methods.

A cute wall quote we picked up
at a local shop this week
(‘Life is too short for bad coffee’)

We live in what I consider a coffee culture. Coffee is good here. Like, really good. It’s strong. Flavorful. And in abundance. Coffee and conversation: it’s a big part of our lives here. Coffee is something we like to enjoy together, and something we share with others often.

So when our anniversary was approaching, we decided we’d really like to buy a new coffee machine (aka coffee maker, kaffetrakter) as our gift to each other. For the past 14 months we’ve been using the one that was left in our apartment. It was probably the cheapest model on the market and most of the time the coffee tasted scorched. We often use our french press, espresso pot, pour over, or aeropress when we have extra time and just want a cup or two. But we really like to have a machine for the mornings, so we can make a full pot.

We started doing some research and discovered MoccaMaster. They are handmade in the Netherlands and are reported to be the best. However, while they are super nice, the price wasn’t exactly in our budget. But thanks to an unexpected gift card from our power company, we were able to get the machine we really wanted for a REALLY good price!

I didn’t think it would make that big of a difference, but this machine rocks. A complete brew in six minutes, two heat settings for the burner so the coffee in the pot doesn’t get too hot, and the water is kept at optimal temperature throughout the brewing process. I love our new toy, and look forward to many happy years with it!

Norwegian Christmas: Part 3

We spent about 24 hours in Oslo this week. We had numerous meetings with local friends/partners. And we enjoyed seeing the city all decked out for Jul!

You never know what you might see near Oslo S!
We visited Tim Wendelboe coffee with
our friend Sæbjørn

 

 

Lunch at Mathallen
Beautiful street decorations
Love this window display!
Karl Johans Gate and the Palace

 

 

 

Sentrum with Bente

 

 

 

 

 

See the horse’s antlers? 🙂