Vitamin Doppelespresso, Keep the Spin On.

A few weeks ago, I introduced you to my perfect-7, the Mississippi. Some days I am chattier than others and today is one of them. As such, my blog takes us back to last year, to Deutschland where there are so many more places, people and of course great coffee to talk about and this, trust me, is going to take me forever to get to the finish line.

Laundry and hotels. These were two essentials that got me a little anxious when I was in Bonn. I will tell you why. 

Now, a lovely city like Bonn has plenty of hotels, but hotels were fully reserved even before my trip had been decided on due to events that were going on in Bonn and in the cities nearby. So, I couldn't secure a reservation at the same hotel for the entire trip. Therefore, I stayed at different hotels, on different days, in the same town, depending on the room availability. Does this sound fun to you? Yes? Actually it was not.  

I usually am game for a nomadic adventure, but after the 3rd check-in-unpack-pack-checkout in the same city, the moving got less exciting than it was in the beginning. My colleague Miro who on the other hand arrived in Bonn (during the same period) without a reservation (due to late travel request), even had an interesting NYPD-like encounter at the hotel where he stayed. His comical illustration of those events will forever be one of our dinner time conversations. Ding-Dong, Ding-Dong! I am still amused. If nothing else was available, as Libor suggested, there is always a place in Königswinter. Now that little town away from Bonn is a charm! Definitely a good choice to stay at. At the end all worked out well, we all survived! We each had a roof, and the city went about doing just great to host those events.

I usually am game for a nomadic adventure, but after the third check-in-unpack-pack-checkout in the same city, the moving got less exciting than it was in the beginning. On the other hand, my colleague Miro who arrived without a reservation had an interesting NYPD-like encounter at the hotel where he stayed. His comical illustration of those events will forever be one of our dinner time conversations. Ding-Dong, Ding-Dong! (catch up with me if you want to know more about this.) Anyway, I am still amused. If nothing else was available, as Libor suggested, there is always a place in Königswinter. Now there's a charm! Definitely a good choice and at the end all worked out well, all survived! All had a roof, and the city went about doing just great to host those events.

Taking in the Godesburg

Laundry needs brought me to a neighbourhood called Bad Godesberg, the municipal district of Bonn. Here is a bit of history I googled: Up until 1999, while Bonn was the capital of West Germany, foreign embassies were located in Bad Godesberg. Today some of these buildings are still used as consulates or embassy branch offices. This neighbourhood, just like the rest of Bonn is a squeaky clean, green and warm. 

My first visit to Bad Godesberg was on the hotel staff’s recommendation when I enquired about coin-operated laundry facilities. So, after work, 'got on the train, got off at Bad Godesberg station. Once there, a short flight of steps up and I am in another delightful and important landmark. When I arrived, I was welcomed by a nice row of inviting outlets. The laundry, the reason for this trip, though not a coin-operated one was closed.  This could only mean one thing, I’d be back again and again and yet again – not only for laundry but also for the leisurely walk up to Godesburg (castle on the hill),  weekend lunch, weeknight dinner and to visit the weekend morning market.  I even convinced my sister who visited me for a few days from the US to explore this little municipal and she came back with loads of magnificent photo shots and a good selection of not-so-easy-to-get fruits back in Malaysia, both left me awed.

Wake me, shake me!

I found a couple of exquisite yet not-so-expensive restaurants and boutique cafes in this neighbourhood, one of which served the best almond croissants. The coffee here was also satisfying. My order for that morning was a fine black one with warm milk. Truly a local flavour! Just as the brightly lit cafe, their staff wore brightly lit smiles as they served everyone. The coffee was a little stronger than what I usually would have liked to have, but that’s me. The snow-flaked croissant, mama mia! The best on the planet. Together, both the coffee and croissant complimented the perfect sunny day outside. The picture here shows only a glimpse of the croissant on the right.

The wake-me-up coffee is as essential as a calm-me-down beer in Germany and here in Bonn is where I got into the habit of reinforcing an afternoon coffee in my routine, all over again. The best part of this is after that cuppa I could still sleep at night!  Most of Germany has a fantastic coffee selection but I like the traditional hot cappuccino the best, it’s worked out to have a pretty consistent taste.  We, or at least the GECO team, didn’t have to go too far in search of one in the afternoons, Nona was our key to the crucial daily question: - Meet you at Nona’s?

Justus, Christian, Saby :  Models-trees-sun
and coffee...studio perfect! 

We don’t know where Nona is today. It’s however confirmed that she hasn’t magically turned herself into a hedgehog; therefore, she is not hibernating in the cold. But she is indeed perfecting the game of hide-and-seek, and since we haven't found her yet, we miss her coffee. Well, on second thoughts maybe, just maybe,  she is taking a break and hibernating from Team-GECO’s he-man-coffee requests. So, until we get the perfect team photo with her, some of my teammates have agreed to be the models to show you how a coffee truck looks and a glimpse into their mid-day routine. As for Nona, come back and brew ‘em the best and express some over to the rest of the team who are offsite. Saby says his coffee needs to be E-ticketed ones these days, for which Nona would very quickly add a couple of extra shots of Espresso into the mix. For those who are wondering, Nona is the cheerful coffee truck owner at the DHL head office site in Bonn who knows everyone's coffee preference.

And tomorrow is another work day. No break for now, but that's not going to stop us from counting those stars to reach Delphi. See you next week in Munich.