An enthusiastic coffee lover, I taste any kind of coffee wherever I travel. The taste and flavor of the first Turkish coffee I had 25 years ago has won my heart. Unfiltered and with three different levels of sweetness, Turkish coffee is a part of Turkish people’s daily life which, if you are obsevant enough, can be seen at cafes, restaurants, tea houses and of course at home. Next to your coffee, usually a glass of water is served to cleanse the residues of coffee in your mouth afterwards. More sophisticated cafe or host will place a piece or two Turkish delight on the coffee saucer, the sweet taste of that goes well with the bitter taste of the coffe itself.
Fortune-telling by reading the almost-dry coffee residues in the cup is a common practice among females, although men also do so but mostly in the coffee shop done by professional fortune-tellers. During my two-week travelling in Turkey, I had my fortune read every time I had a cup of coffee. To my great surprise, it was very accurate, well, at least about my past at the time. Even more surprising was that two things were repeatedly mentioned on each and every fortune-telling episode. One was that I was to marry a Turkish guy within six months; the other was that we would have twin girls. Both came true!
More often than not, the Turkish coffee is drunk after meal, because it is believed to be good for digestion. Serving guests Turkish coffee after meal is a gesture of hospitality of the host and yet sometimes it is a subtle hint that the event is at its end or at a restaurant it could mean it was time to pay the bill if the waiter kept asking the guests if they would like to have Turkish coffee.
Turkish Coffee a glimpse of Turkish Culture
Turkish coffee also has its place in traditional alternative treatment for diahhrea. One day in a village picking wild grapes during my private tour in Cappadocia, I needed to use restroom badly due to diahhrea, my guide took me to a nearby house whose host, a 78-year-old woman, showed us in. Ovbiously my guide told her about my discomfort and she gave me a tea spoonful of ground Turkish coffee and told to swallow it, saying it would stop the diahhrea. And it did!
Thank you very much Taylan for your warm hospitality..
A glimpse of Turkish Culture "Turkish Coffee",
