Coffee Date with My Boys & the Importance of Kafa

I've been reading a lot lately on the importance of kafa (coffee!) in Croatia. The fascinating part to me is that it's more about sitting down with someone for an hour, or two, or even three, to talk, and less about the actual coffee itself. Though we do hear the coffee is really good! There are coffee shops all throughout Zagreb, lining the streets, and I read that it's common to go to the exact same one every day. I am so excited to dive into this part of the culture. I love a good coffee date. In Okinawa, Kenz, Stace and I would meet up atleast once (sometimes two or three) times a week in the morning with our little babes who were still small enough to sleep on us in a wrap, while we sat outside Coffee Casa talking about every subject under the sun, and reminding each other that the incredibly long nights of not sleeping would one day pass, laughing about the strange things our bodies were all doing after birth, and realizing that it was totally fine if our babies missed their usual nap attempts at home so that we could spend that time together. I always felt so refreshed after those mornings with them, even if I had only slept an hour the night before!

Early Monday morning, we made breakfast together, threw on clothes and went on a coffee date to Cafe Lumiere. It's only a block or two walk from the harbor and their cappuccino and latte were so good (though they could never top yours, Lanney & Timmy Britt!)

It might look like we enjoyed a long, leisurely coffee date, but the real life version is that while it was so sweet being together, sitting and laughing, it lasted for about five whole glorious minutes. I wouldn't expect our energetic one year old to make it any longer than that. We downed those delicious coffees in about two minutes flat and I was jittery the entire day, but so thankful for a morning date with my boys!

I also wanted to take you inside Parker-Lusseau Pastries & Cafe... It is darling. They are well-known in the area for their yummy pastries that are made fresh daily, and their whole selection and atmosphere is very inviting and very French. I took home a buttery croissant for Cam, two ciabatta rolls for our soup dinner and a morning bun and ratatouille quiche for a friend.

I'd recommend both cafes if you're ever in Monterey!