coffee shops: my safe haven

If you know me, then you’ll know that 80% of the time, I can be found at a coffee shop. Ask any of my roommates and they’ll roll their eyes about how many times I find myself at Open Eye, a local coffee shop in Carrboro, N.C. (I give them an obscene amount of my money). There’s just no place quite like it. Whether I’m working on homework, hanging out with friends or reading a book, I’d rather do it in a coffee shop than almost anywhere else.

There’s nothing quite like sitting down at coffee shop with a hot cup of joe and a good book. Side note: I’m currently reading Educated by Tara Westover and it is PHENOMENAL. Definitely add it to your reading list. Anyways, the atmosphere has an unrivaled coziness to it and even though everyone is separately doing their own things, I feel community within these coffee shops. These people, just like me, couldn’t stay in their house or at the library another minute, so here they are.

You can also tell lot about a city just by visiting one of their coffee shops. Is everything locally sourced and over $6? Are the baristas sweet old folks or aggressively hipster? Is there classical music playing in the background or indie’s top hits? Each are special in their own way and one is not better than the other (except I do have my favorites).

I remember when I was waiting around in Munich for my friends to land (I arrived approximately nine hours before everyone), I found myself in a coffee shop. Yes, I needed fuel after taking an overnight bus from Florence, but also I knew I would find a common language: coffee. No matter where I traveled, I always found myself in some form of coffee shop, and it was so indicative of the culture. In America, many of us go to coffee shops to do work, but in Italy, I never found one Italian doing work in a coffee shop. They were there for community and conversation, which was a stark change from American shops.

Coffee shops are also one of the absolute best places for people watching. I’ve seen many a first date (and breakup) happen at a coffee shop and it provides entertainment for when I’m taking a mental break. People of all different types and ages seem to congregate at coffee shops and it’s refreshing to work in that type of environment since I'm usually surrounded by 20-somethings all day! They get pretty boring.

Even though I usually go to coffee shops to do homework, it’s an adventure to me. I could be working on my essay (or this blog post) at home, but that’s pretty lackluster. I like being alone often and I like how at coffee shops, I can be alone alongside a bunch of other people. Sounds weird, but it’s comforting.

So if you need any coffee shop recommendations, I’m your girl, particularly in the Triangle area.

xx