I have had more coffee in the past five days than I've had in the past five months. Since arriving here, I've consumed something like eighteen cups -- which seems like a lot, especially since I'm a staunch tea person, States-side.
Coffee here is also much stronger than what passes for coffee in the U.S. -- it's either Turkish or very strong Nescafe or, on occasion, espresso. All are generally consumed black and unsweetened. Every morning in the office begins with coffee, and in the middle of every afternoon the cleaning lady comes with another tray of coffee. Most people who wake up in time for breakfast start their day with coffee, and the entire city seems to congregate in cafes after working hours. That's at least four a day for most people; in missing breakfast, I have been sticking to just three.
Decaf coffee simply does not exist here. There is some herbal tea, but not much.
This may have something to do with the acute insomnia I have experienced for the past few nights, not falling asleep until 3 or 4am.
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On Sunday, I went with two of my colleagues to a nearby park. There is a large windowless brick structure in the middle of this park, symbolizing a prison, and there are huge granite monuments throughout, commemorating the massacre of nearly 7,000 people by the Nazis. In response to insurgent attacks, the Germans used to murder 50 people for every one soldier who was wounded, and 100 people for every soldier who was killed. (At the start of the war, there were two opposition groups here, Tito's Partisans and a different group that supported the former monarchy of the country; this high civilian cost was why the monarchists stopped attacking Germans, but it apparently didn't halt the Partisans.)
This particular massacre occurred one October day; the Germans killed almost all of the men of the town. They also took five classes of students from the local high-school (which is across the street from my accommodation), thereby also killing nearly an entire generation of boys. All of these people were executed in the park. The students reportedly had to dig their own mass grave while their teacher sang.
Coffee here is also much stronger than what passes for coffee in the U.S. -- it's either Turkish or very strong Nescafe or, on occasion, espresso. All are generally consumed black and unsweetened. Every morning in the office begins with coffee, and in the middle of every afternoon the cleaning lady comes with another tray of coffee. Most people who wake up in time for breakfast start their day with coffee, and the entire city seems to congregate in cafes after working hours. That's at least four a day for most people; in missing breakfast, I have been sticking to just three.
Decaf coffee simply does not exist here. There is some herbal tea, but not much.
This may have something to do with the acute insomnia I have experienced for the past few nights, not falling asleep until 3 or 4am.
-----------------
On Sunday, I went with two of my colleagues to a nearby park. There is a large windowless brick structure in the middle of this park, symbolizing a prison, and there are huge granite monuments throughout, commemorating the massacre of nearly 7,000 people by the Nazis. In response to insurgent attacks, the Germans used to murder 50 people for every one soldier who was wounded, and 100 people for every soldier who was killed. (At the start of the war, there were two opposition groups here, Tito's Partisans and a different group that supported the former monarchy of the country; this high civilian cost was why the monarchists stopped attacking Germans, but it apparently didn't halt the Partisans.)
This particular massacre occurred one October day; the Germans killed almost all of the men of the town. They also took five classes of students from the local high-school (which is across the street from my accommodation), thereby also killing nearly an entire generation of boys. All of these people were executed in the park. The students reportedly had to dig their own mass grave while their teacher sang.
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