Thursday 4 June 2020

Cafe Koultoura

Kafe koultoura

Or cafe culture in another language.  Every country has this love of coffee (or whatever drink you drink).  France and Italy are the countries which jump out for me.  Here in Greece when my girls go out for coffee it is coffee in inverted commas. Coffee in the morning, 'coffee' till the late hours.  A coffee here means hours of talking, watching humanity passing by and possibly 'sitting on' a small demi tasse of greek coffee costing as little as 1 euro..   What it is Not part of the culture is a plastic cup of coffee in hand while walking down the street.

Where you drink your coffee is very important.  The coffee has to be good but so does the compoany that gathers round you and the friendliness and interaction of the owner and the waiter.  If you're a regular your coffee will be brought out to you without having to wait and order it.  They know who you are and remember what you like.

Here on Poros we frequent two (sometimes 3) cafeterias which are K-approved.  We warn visitors and show them the correct hangouts.  If you sit elsewhere he won't be joining you ....and you'll miss out on that quintessential (k) greek experience.

I just had a look at the top coffee drinking countries.  The Scandanavian countries are up all up there in the top 5, Italy is number 13, Greece 17 and France 18.  I presume that Scandanavians make/get their coffee, drink it and  have another 2 or three or more during the day, unlike the slower paced mediterranean countries where coffee is only one part of the package and is often followed by your favourite tipple.

The Cafenion
This is a smaller and older-fashioned version of the cafeteria where men gather to play cards and backgammon, drink coffee and ouzo, and pass their day away from the wife. There is no loud music and the meze for ouzo will be be a simple plate of olives and cucumber all on a toothpick. Poros hasn't too got a traditional cafenion anymore, not that I can think of anyway.  The elderly men, sometimes with their wives nowadays, gather at certain cafeterias, most of them on the K list.  



This is our view from the down-town cafeteria where we usually drink our coffee
I've posted a similar photo many, many times
With a yacht or maybe a fishing boat in the background, with a foreground of the lines of motorbikes


This was taken on our first day back after lockdown
The same company in the back of the cafe, sitting in their same seats
Everyday at 10am, they appear, an older couple first and they are joined by a changing group of 4 or 5, always talking loudly

The tables are slightly further apart, the waitress wears a mask, sometimes on her face, sometimes around the neck.  Otherwise the scene is unchanged



After coffee came red wine and ouzo
That reliable normality again



People stopped for a chat, moved on
Here is our local priest on his way back from a house visit and a blessing


Our bikes parked opposite
As usual someone parks on the road right behind me so I can't get out even though there is a space 2 metres down


Double parking for cars of course


Even a couple of luxury yachts
Greek owned I suppose and with greek passengers


Social distancing is not the norm

Behind us was the bouzouki player with a wee crowd around his table, drinking and sighing and singing to the passionate love songs

This weekend is a three-dayer
Suzi (her surname), the weather lady, has promised the sun will shine so the island will be full again.  Full of the richer Athenians who weren't affected by three months without income.


21 comments:

  1. I read somewhere that the Ottomans left coffee and cymbals behind at the battle of Vienna and people started drinking coffee. I suppose it's all part of the Silk road story that we got to drink tea and coffee and sample the veg and spices? I love a cafetiere of ground black coffee in the morning. Great post.

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    1. Yes,Dave, I put on pot of filter coffee on the mornings. Lidls have good coffee grounds, as you may have noticed. Any coffee on the pot now I make into iced coffee in the afternoon. Just put a few ice cubes in great. Do like it hot in the morning though

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  2. It all sounds so very civilised. So much better than the grabbed coffee in cardboard.

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    1. Coffee in a real China cup and a little bikkie on the side. Good way to start the day

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  3. Ah, that's the life.
    Wish our coffee was only (the equivalent of) 1 euro 😏

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    1. The cappuccino and other coffees are a bit more expensive but in a village a cup of greek coffee will be 1 euro.

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  4. How lucky these businesses are... That they are not in cities, in my Beloved Country. Where they could have been broken into and gutted, by the criminal and anarchist elements of these... protests.

    They have hi-jacked the peaceful protests, with the blessing of the media, and some politicians.

    -sigh-

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  5. How good life is back to being almost what it used to be.

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    1. Hope the same is happening where you are Yael!

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  6. That was interesting to read about your local cafe culture. Each country seems to have their own way of drinking coffee, and yours sounds much more relaxed and friendly than what is commonly found here.

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    1. I always have trouble with my coffee drinking. In NZ I drink it too slow, my companions sit there finger tapping while I leisurely empty the cup but here in Greece I drink it too fast for them.
      It's certainly relaxing having a coffee here

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  7. Where on earth did this fashion for wandering about the streets with a plastic thing of coffee in one hand come from? It is one of those current trends that I find absolutely ghastly. Give me a proper Café any day!

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    1. I agree. They get their caffeine hit but they certainly can't enjoy it while walking along a street

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  8. My Spanish/Greek friend/neighbour Pili could wax lyrical on your opening comment about the portable coffee fashion (and does, and about the wastefulness of it, the litter on the streets....didahdidahdidah) - and neither of us could agree more with your whole review on cafe culture and what the coffee really represents as part of the glue in our communities. It's sounder glue than the alcohol culture I grew up with in NZ. I know your cafe, I have breakfasted there! Lovely place.

    Shame about the cafenions (not everyone would agree) but men do need places to go and talk men-stuff. There has been a rise in English speaking countries of a movement called 'men's sheds' aimed at providing men over a certain age with somewhere to go and find company, talk, do stuff if they want to, generally to improve health both physical and mental. Maybe cafenions were that place here. There are still loads around us here in Piraeus.

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    1. When I think about it I think it a great pity there are no more cafenions. The last ones were owned by elderly gentlemen and when they went theie children turn them into trendy cafeterias. When we go shopping in Nafplio and Argos, and even Korinth there are several small cafenions which we frequent. Still very much in the old style, run by men in white aprons. I am usually the only woman there but I am obvioulsy a foreigner so I just fit in....as well as I can in a group of greek men. These places fascinate me. There is always a table or two of card players, even at 11 in the morning. There will be a few loan wolves drinking ouzo and smoking (no restrictions here!), others will be watching tv and discussing the news and there will always be a table of friends full of glasses and stale coffee cups and plates of half eaten mezethes. I take as many photos as I can withut being obvious

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  9. I thought Australia had the most coffee drinkers

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    1. I can't remember where Australia came in the list but I wouldn't call nzers or Australians great coffee drinkers.

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  10. We were able to go to the cafe this week. So we booked our table and had brunch
    We usually go to the cafe after swimming in the morning. But we still are not swimming. So to help the cafe and start socialising again we are going to try and get there once a week for brunch
    But our weather isn’t as nice as yours

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    1. Thats what I remember a 'downunder' cafe as being, more of a lunch meeting place. I also remember the great array of salads and pies and savouries. Its a great way to help your favourite cafe and see friends. Hope you can go swimming soon

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  11. These glimpses of your life on Poros cheer up the dullest of mornings. I am sipping my first coffee of the morning (5.30 am) enjoying the warmth and beauty of a Greek cafe, no bazouki player here, just the sounds of the dog snoring, story of my life!

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