~World Cup~

World Cup is a facinating coffee shop, at least the one here in Topeka Kansas is. Facinating how? I guess that can be taken a couple of ways, but in this case facinating means odd. In all honesty I have only been to this coffee shop once before going again this weekend. It's probably not fair of me to judge the place because I have only been there a couple times, but I feel like I should tell my opinion anyway then you can go and decide for yourself if you like it, that is if you have not ever been there. 

To simply put it I think the place is crowded, is not decorated well, and the coffee is ok. However, the bartistas are friendly and helpful. They do have a good variety of food and drinks to choose from that other people may enjoy. I can't give my opinion on their food becasue I have not tried any. I have had a couple of coffee drinks and was not impressed by the taste of either. I recently tried the Dark Chocolate Mocha. I expected it to be more rich and have more of of chocolate taste. It did not which disappointed me. As far as the design of the building, the outside is decieving. 

The place looks bigger on the outside then it is.When I walked in I felt cramped and that was with nobody in line. I can only imagine how it is when people are lined up. There is not much room to walk at all. It made me want to hurry up, get my coffee and leave. I like coffee shops that fell the opposite of that. 

I think that is the main reason I don't like the place. It's the atmosphere. It's really unfortunate too becasue the atmosphere makes it hard for college students like me to want to study there and it is so close to campus. I would personally rather drive 15 minutes away to another coffee shop then hang out there, but just because I don't like it does not mean others won't. In fact I know some people who do enjoy going and hanging out there. 

~Gingerbread Latté~

The holidays are just around the corner and as I'm counting down the days until Thanksgiving and Christmas I realize I have not had a real holiday drink and by holiday drink I mean something that tastes like Christmas in a cup. The number one place I know where to get that kind of drink is indeed Starbucks. I know I write about Starbucks a lot but it is my favorite place to get coffee. Right now they have a nice variety of holiday drinks to try. There is the Caramel Brulee Latte, Peppermint Mocha, Eggnog Latte, and the Gingerbread Latte which is the one I will be discussing. 

I have been wanting to try this drink for about a week now. I have seen several of my friends and family post on their social sites about wanting one or how good it is. Someone I follow on Instagram posted a picture with the festive red cup saying, "Baby it's cold outside, but I have my Gingerbread Latte so it's all good." Also one of my friends on Twitter said, "Now I want a Gingerbread Latte. Yummm." All the posts made me finally break downn and get one. 

 It was nice because I had a birthday reward from Starbucks so my drink was free. Let me explain how that works. Starbucks has a reward system. What you do is purchase a gift card and put money on it, then you go to the Starbucks website and register your card. Starbucks explains how it works on the website but if you have any questions you can ask me or your local Starbucks bartista. 

 Starbucks is absolutely crazy this time of year. It seems like everybody in town feels the need to get coffee. Whhen I went this afternoon to get some I had to wait in the drive thru for awhile. I'm guessing you are probably wondering why I didn't go in? Well it was busy inside too. It wouldn't have made a difference. Anyway, when I finally got up to the menu board to order I saw all the wonderful holiday options which made come close to changing my order, but then I thought I should stick with what I was originally going to get. I thought I can always come back and try something else later. 

 Long story short, I loved the Gingerbread Latte and I will get it again. It lives up to the name and reviews I have read. Everyone should try this heavenly holiday drink and get the biggest size. It's incredible and perfect for the holiday season.

~Classic Bean~

Have you ever been to Classic Bean? If not you should go. I absolutely love the atmosphere of the place. It's warm, cozy and welcoming. It is also very spacious and has a lot of choices on where to sit. There's comfy couches and chairs and then there are regular tables and chairs for people to eat at. It's a wonderful place to study or just hang out with friends. I think it's especially nice this time of year when it's cold out. There's a holiday feel to the coffee shop because there is a really beautiful Christmas tree shining through their shop window. 

I've been to Classic Bean a couple times before.The bartistas have always been friendly. I have always gotten a caramel iced latte with whipped cream, but this time I had a cinnamon latté with soy milk. Doesn't sound very good right? It was not good so I gave it to my sister. She liked it. I like really sweet coffees and to me it tasted plain. There was no flavor to it. 

I plan to go again. There's so many food and beverages to try. They have a lot of different options. I recommend everyone going there. You won't regret it. 

Christmas Music Podcast with Bradley and Jacqui

Listen to this episode

~ JAVA BAR ~

About a few years ago I was introduced to this little coffee shop called Java Bar. In all my years living in Topeka Kansas I had never heard of it until a friend took me there. I personally don't think a lot of people know about it, maybe it's because the outside sign says "ICE & OLIVES." The shop has two sides to it. One side is a deli and the other is the coffee shop.

They have delicious foods like soups, quesidillas, and sandwiches with sides such as chips, cole slaw, and potato salad. Then they have desert pastries and more. Of course they also have coffee drinks and teas.

The atmosphere is relaxing and comfortable. They have tables and chairs for people to eat at, or if people just want to get together to have a drink and visit with friends and family, but they also have an excluded corner where there's a big comfy red couch. I tend to sit there and study a lot.

If you ever want to check it out it's on 3627 SE 29th Street Topeka, KS 66605. Their hours on this website. http://www.iceandolives.com/#!hours-/-contact-us

~ Funny Story ~

I have a funny story to share. The other night I went to the store to buy some groceries for the week and as I was walking down the aisles I came across coffee. I wasn't planning on buying any considering I'm always going to coffee shops and buying my specialty drinks. However, I thought I'd save some money for once by purchasing some I can make at home. Well the funny thing is I ended up buying the wrong kind. 

I ended up getting Starbucks Caffe Verona Dark Roast instead of Starbucks Caffe Verona Ground. The difference is my coffee maker wont brew roast unless it's grounded. So when I went to make a cup the other night I found out I couldn't use what I bought. I tried grounding it myself by putting the coffee beans in a ziplock bag and trying to crush them with a knife over the kitchen counter but they were just too hard. Needless to say I was disappointed. Maybe this story is more sad then funny.

Anyway, you would think a coffee fanatic as myself would know what kind of coffee to buy, but you have to understand I've NEVER bought coffee for myself. I guess because I've never had to until now. Until last year I hadn't owned a coffee maker, but last November on my birthday I recieved one as a present and along with it I got a bag of Starbucks Dark Cafe Verona coffee. I had never had it before but I ended up really liking it. I don't drink coffee all the time so the bag lasted me most of the season. 

You may be wondering why I am just now buying coffee. Well as it gets cooler out I'm wanting that steamy hot cup of coffee in the morning to get through my day. Personally I'd rather have coffee at my house then have to rise early, drive across town and wait 20 mins in line just to order coffee. It's a time saver really to just make it at home. I learned a valuable lesson, make sure you know there are different types of coffees out there and make sure you buy the right one because sadly I wasted $10.

   The wrong coffee

~ Norah Jones ~

Today I woke up not feeling well. I had the worst headache, sinus problems and asthma problems so I stayed home from school and work. Whenever I'm home feeling sick I tend to just stay in bed and listen to music. There's not really anything else to do, plus I find listening to music helps me get my mind off how bad I'm feeling. It's an escape and makes me feel a little better. Most of the time I'll put on Pandora instead of listening to my iTunes music. Of course I like my own music, but I suppose part of me likes not knowing what song is going to play next.

So I was listening to the coffee shop soundtrack station and came across several music artists I enjoyed, but there was one specific person that stood out. Her name is Norah Jones. I've heard her music before but had forgotten about her until today. Listening to her song "Don't Know Why" helped me recall why I liked her so much in the first place. She's an unusual artists. I think Norah Jones is unusual  because I haven't heard many artists that have her same sound and style. Normally when I hear an artists I can say they sound a little like another artists, but she's different.  She brings a different sound to music. She strips down her music to help audience relate. I definitely recommend listening to some of her music because she has won Best Jazz Vocalist and Best Original Composition.

I decided to look up information to understand a little about her background how she grew up because she intrigued me. I  found out she had to make her way up in music and earned her place. When she was young she sang in church choirs and took piano lessons. She went to the Dallas Booker T Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and majored in jazz piano at the University of North Texas. I think the most interesting fact about her is she waited on tables and sang jazz standard in local clubs. She worked hard to get where she is and I think for that she deserves to be recognized. 

http://youtu.be/8u1DdbNC7DM