Sweet Nothings : February 2015

I dream about those cold, wintry days that I once complained of, especially when the temps begin to rise to summer temperatures in February like they are now. Ugh. You know, those days where you just cannot seem to warm up, the sky seems drab and dreary, there is nothing green in sight, the cold seems endless, and you become seriously grumpy whenever you have to walk outside to your freezing car, just to sit inside and wait for the heater to start unthawing your fingers. I'm sure many of you are experiencing this as I write, but trust me, there are some perks to the cold and dreary days. Since I don't have those days very often anymore, I daydream about them. Literally. I sit and stare out the window and imagine myself somewhere cold, sitting inside a perfectly cozy café, sipping on a warm, creamy drink.

It's these fantasies that have driven me to search for those cafés that offer this sense of warmth, that are undeniably inviting, and make your heart feel full as soon as you walk in the doors. I love going places where time seems to almost stop. In the midst of a busy day, where it seems most are working behind a desk or working a day shift in a restaurant or teaching a class or studying for school, you walk into one of the cafés, the ones off of the busy street, big windows allowing the daylight to illuminate and warm its interior, and there are live and actual people inside! They're working on their laptops, listening to music, or sharing an afternoon with a friend. The coziness and calm of the café seems like the perfect escape from the frigid bustle of the gray world just outside.

When I do get the chance to travel, I am always on the look out for these perfect neighborhood cafés. Cafés offer me a place to get that pause in my day; to regroup, to sit, and to just be. When I do find one of these gems, it is irresistible to "people watch" and draw up stories about what their lives must be about. I love this. I live for this stuff. If I could make a career out of it, I would. Professional "people watcher/story-maker-upper"? Yes, please!

Anyway, back to the point. Cafés. Truly, everybody from every culture and in every socio-economic standing has access to a café. I have seen cafés in the dingiest of areas and the most lavish of neighborhoods; some serving up tea and coffee in styrofoam cups, others offering high tea in gold leaf trimmed china. My favorite type of cafés are the ones that just make you feel warm and welcome once you walk in the door. The ones that let in a lot of natural light. The ones that allow its customers to come as they are; no dress code, no requirement, and definitely no reservation. A place that attracts every walk of life, offering a great cup of coffee or tea for a reasonable price, while hosting their guests with comfortable seating, a little background music, and lots of street side entertainment.

There are so so many great spaces that offer this perfect aesthetic concoction of trendy, soothing, sweet, and fashionable, but I could only incorporate what I found to be some of the best depictions of a perfect café.