i am in new zealand because of coffee. and god, i suppose. but it started with coffee.

when i went through a cleanse last year, i wrote about looking forward to my first cup of post-cleanse coffee. a ysmarko reader from new zealand named tash mcgill commented that if i were ever in new zealand, she would introduce me to real coffee. i told tash i would love to visit nz someday. and the next thing i know, tash is telling me she’s the program director of a large youth event, and wondering if i would consider being their speaker.

so it was only right that when my family landed in auckland a couple weeks ago, and tash picked us up, one of our first stops was a coffee shop. kiwis really do like their coffee. it’s a “cafe culture”, they say. but here’s the thing: they DO NOT like filter coffee, like we americans do. all their good coffee is espresso or espresso-related. a “short black” is a little single espresso. a “double short black” is, well, a double espresso. a “tall black” is a single or double espresso with some hot water in it (probably the closest thing to good strong coffee in the states). and a “flat white” is latte.

but this is interesting: they drink flat whites (lattes) in small glass tumblers, without a handle. like a small water glass. oh, and they often have two or three sizes — the very common large size called a “latte bowl”. and it’s served in a literal bowl, as in the pic below. again, no handles: so you have to pick it up and drink it like a chinese soup bowl.

i’ve come to love these “latte bowls”. i’m really gonna miss them. and i’m thinking someone could make a killing in the states if they opened a coffee shop that served coffee in the kiwi style.

oh, and, yes, i am wearing braids in this picture. deal with it.