Rediscovering coffee

Coffee,more an experience than just a drink. My first coffee was probably the one which my mom prepared at home . A decade back Starbucks,Tim Hortons ,Coffee day, Barisata were unheard of…or i must say i never heard about them. As a kid coffee was just another morning ritual. Gulp down the glass of filter coffee which my dear mom would prepare and rush to school. I never pondered about the passion behind coffee making.Over the last few years i have rediscoverd the essence of coffee in my life. Be it from meeting my old friends or planning my career moves,be it from meeting my lifepartner or deciding on my financial moves, coffee has played a major role in my life.

The first time I had my Starbucks coffee was at HongKong. I fell in love with the coffee, the service and the ambiance of the place. It was not just plain coffee, it was a whole new experience.Right from the time i entered the store, to the barista making my cup of coffee,to the music,the ambiance, I could feel ever bit of it.My second experience with Starbucks was at Shenzhen.The service,the cofffee remained unchanged. In Shenzhen where people hardly speak english, at Starbucks I had people greeting me in english, talking to me in english and serving me a global brand.Try to lay your hands on a book “Pour Your Heart Into It : How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time “. You will realize the passion behind building this great global brand.

Last year i got an opportunity to visit Canada. Everywhere i could see another brand “Tim Hortons”. It is not fair to compare Tims with Starbucks. Both of them have their own mark. Tim Hortons was another cozy ,friendly coffee shop. I and Sumana must have spent most of our time at Tim Hortons. Right from the French Vanilla coffee to the timbits.All week we would wait to go to Tim Hortons and have our cup of coffee. I guess the cold climate of Canada adds up to the taste of the coffee. 6 months in canada with Tim Horotons was an all new experience.Even today both of us frequently talk about the good time we had at Tim Hortons.

We do not have Starbucks or Tim Hortons in Bangalore. But then we have Cafe Coffee day and Barista. Its not fair on my part to compare the global brands with what we have here,but then I do not have other options.I am not a great fan of Coffee day, but Barista to some extend.
Lately we came across another coffee shop called” Kala Mane”. The filter coffee they prepare tastes really good.

Check the 4 coffee shops which rock.
http://www.starbucks.com
http://www.timhortons.com
http://www.barista.co.in
http://www.cafecoffeeday.com

Time to go for my cup of coffee.

The wind of changes

The first thing a person has to adopt in his life is “change”.Change is inevitable. Let me start with the city I live in ,Bangalore. I moved into this garden city 7 years ago. Little did I know where the city would move and so would I. From Bangalore to Bengaluru, form a software trainee to an Account manager, things have changed and changed for good.

I moved to this city with no clear career path in mind… All i wanted then was a stable job, no risks.Slowly did I realize that risk and opportunity go hand in hand. And the more calculated risks I took ,the more opportunities came my path.Life has taught me many lessons in the last 7 years.

All I can think at this point is the famous song by Scorpions ” Wind of Change”
I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
An August summer night
Soldiers passing by
Listening to the wind of change ………..

Another wonderful day comes to an end