I first heard that there was new coffee shop in town from another blog. I learned from that blog that this new place was pretty close to being a Starbucks and it had WiFi.....no clue as to its name, its neighborhood, or anything else that might help me find it in this concrete jungle of three million tea drinkers. But before I went home for Christmas, Barbara happened to mention that there was a new cafe called "Baku Roasting Company" that she'd been to, and that we'd have to try it once we were both back on town.
Could this be the same place? Her description sure made it sound like it was....something HUGE to look forward to when I got back. Not only did this new place serve lattes and cappucinos, it served just plain regular coffee in nice tall take away cups, if you wanted to take it away. This could mean we wouldn't have to drive all the way to the Gangeliek McDonald's to get one of their wee cappucinos to take in the car. I've been getting two of those wee caps per visit to "McDrav" because the first one is usually gone before we get beyond the roundabout across from it. Maybe those stainless car mugs I got for Christmas could be retired and the few remaining Folgers Singles that I had left could be saved for a rainy driver-less day.
John, being the resourceful type, googled "Baku Roasting Company", found their Facebook page and got the address...a little detail he kept from me when we set out this weekend to find it. I thought we were in for this great Saturday adventure, combing the streets in the Narimanov district for the illusive nectar. So, like an idiot I am disagreeing with him at every turn when he already knows where it is. Alrighty, then.....
We found it, and it's relatively close to our house. Not walking distance close but before you get to the really snarled up traffic close. It probably takes less than 10 minutes to drive there. The hype was deserved. The coffee was so good. Just what I've been craving since I left Halifax in January. Sometimes it doesn't take much...
This week we've started to learn Russian which is easier, despite the wonky Cyrillic alphabet, to learn. I seem to be able to pick up the words in speech better. Too bad I can't retain anything thanks to moderate old age. I've got bang on pronunciation, though.....of the three words that I do I remember. John remembers the words better, but he doesn't quite hear them way the rest of the world does. I figure between the two of us we should be able to get by. Symbiosis is the foundation of many a great relationship.
Hopefully, the Russian lingo isn't all for naught. I think we are barely hanging on by a thread here and the discovery of the new and most favored coffee shop will likely hasten our departure.....in the sense that this is the way these things always go, right? If we are leaving Baku, and where we are going, is still up in the air. I have a feeling we should have a decision of sorts by the end of the month.
For this reason, the pictures are still lined up on the floor along the walls they were supposed to have been hung on a long time ago. I found out that DHL doesn't have a flat rate box from Canada, ***why am I not surprised** and therefore I have to trust my goods to Canada Post. Can I do that with everything up in the air? I'm not sure. I would hate for my best jeans to be following me around the world, always a few months behind. And those best jeans are supposed to be too big for me in a few months anyway!
****Stuffs another handful of potato chips into her mouth.****
Saturdays are turning out to be grocery days and we've settled on the Citi Mart on Semed Vergun as the best place to go. It's not cheap, but it has pretty much everything we need and lots of things that we can't get other places....like celery. That exclusivity allows them to charge eleven manat (about $14USD) but every once in a while ants on a log are just so worth it.
I've had this huge taste for corn bread that won't go away, so this weeks goal was to find corn meal. Earlier attempts to locate some have been futile but one of the joys of Citi Mart is the ever changing stock....the "now you see it, now you don't" aspect isn't always fun...(I really really want the croissants back!)....but maybe this week they would have corn meal.
Well.....I didn't see corn meal....but I spied "Organic Polenta" which sure as hell looked like cornmeal. I tossed a bag in my cart but as I started to walk away something made me turn back to look at the shelf for the price. It was fourteen manat....that bag of polenta was very gently replaced on the shelf for another week. This weeks big ticket item was celery. Next week, I'd get the corn meal.
Yesterday, I had Ali take me to Citi Mart again. This time to get some baking supplies. If I couldn't have cornbread I could have carrot cake, banana muffins, and sugar cookies. I really think there is something to that business about eating the thing that you want the most and thereby saving all the calories from the "also rans". Anyway, I'm pushing my little cart down the little aisles and I round the corner where the baking supplies are. Across the aisle is rice in a hundred different varieties, and what else did I see? Clear bags with Russian labels that looked and a lot like cornmeal....for 1.60 manats. I searched the label for any English at all but could find none, just the two words "corn grats".....close enough....."grits"...."grats"...."meal".....whatever. They can keep their fancy "polenta"....I'll take the "grats" thank you very much.
Could this be the same place? Her description sure made it sound like it was....something HUGE to look forward to when I got back. Not only did this new place serve lattes and cappucinos, it served just plain regular coffee in nice tall take away cups, if you wanted to take it away. This could mean we wouldn't have to drive all the way to the Gangeliek McDonald's to get one of their wee cappucinos to take in the car. I've been getting two of those wee caps per visit to "McDrav" because the first one is usually gone before we get beyond the roundabout across from it. Maybe those stainless car mugs I got for Christmas could be retired and the few remaining Folgers Singles that I had left could be saved for a rainy driver-less day.
John, being the resourceful type, googled "Baku Roasting Company", found their Facebook page and got the address...a little detail he kept from me when we set out this weekend to find it. I thought we were in for this great Saturday adventure, combing the streets in the Narimanov district for the illusive nectar. So, like an idiot I am disagreeing with him at every turn when he already knows where it is. Alrighty, then.....
This week we've started to learn Russian which is easier, despite the wonky Cyrillic alphabet, to learn. I seem to be able to pick up the words in speech better. Too bad I can't retain anything thanks to moderate old age. I've got bang on pronunciation, though.....of the three words that I do I remember. John remembers the words better, but he doesn't quite hear them way the rest of the world does. I figure between the two of us we should be able to get by. Symbiosis is the foundation of many a great relationship.
Hopefully, the Russian lingo isn't all for naught. I think we are barely hanging on by a thread here and the discovery of the new and most favored coffee shop will likely hasten our departure.....in the sense that this is the way these things always go, right? If we are leaving Baku, and where we are going, is still up in the air. I have a feeling we should have a decision of sorts by the end of the month.
For this reason, the pictures are still lined up on the floor along the walls they were supposed to have been hung on a long time ago. I found out that DHL doesn't have a flat rate box from Canada, ***why am I not surprised** and therefore I have to trust my goods to Canada Post. Can I do that with everything up in the air? I'm not sure. I would hate for my best jeans to be following me around the world, always a few months behind. And those best jeans are supposed to be too big for me in a few months anyway!
****Stuffs another handful of potato chips into her mouth.****
Saturdays are turning out to be grocery days and we've settled on the Citi Mart on Semed Vergun as the best place to go. It's not cheap, but it has pretty much everything we need and lots of things that we can't get other places....like celery. That exclusivity allows them to charge eleven manat (about $14USD) but every once in a while ants on a log are just so worth it.
I've had this huge taste for corn bread that won't go away, so this weeks goal was to find corn meal. Earlier attempts to locate some have been futile but one of the joys of Citi Mart is the ever changing stock....the "now you see it, now you don't" aspect isn't always fun...(I really really want the croissants back!)....but maybe this week they would have corn meal.
Well.....I didn't see corn meal....but I spied "Organic Polenta" which sure as hell looked like cornmeal. I tossed a bag in my cart but as I started to walk away something made me turn back to look at the shelf for the price. It was fourteen manat....that bag of polenta was very gently replaced on the shelf for another week. This weeks big ticket item was celery. Next week, I'd get the corn meal.
Yesterday, I had Ali take me to Citi Mart again. This time to get some baking supplies. If I couldn't have cornbread I could have carrot cake, banana muffins, and sugar cookies. I really think there is something to that business about eating the thing that you want the most and thereby saving all the calories from the "also rans". Anyway, I'm pushing my little cart down the little aisles and I round the corner where the baking supplies are. Across the aisle is rice in a hundred different varieties, and what else did I see? Clear bags with Russian labels that looked and a lot like cornmeal....for 1.60 manats. I searched the label for any English at all but could find none, just the two words "corn grats".....close enough....."grits"...."grats"...."meal".....whatever. They can keep their fancy "polenta"....I'll take the "grats" thank you very much.
1 comment:
OMG! I'm so happy for you about the coffee! How have you survived. Yes you!
The rest of your blog was just very informative and bwah-worthy as always!
You lead such an interesting life!
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