Morning coffee

[eurojet]

Okay, when I wake up in the morning, which is usually between 4:30-5:00 because of my work day body clock, the first thing I need is my morning cup of coffee! I read about one albergue that keeps you upstairs until the bell rings at 5:30 AM to signal you downstairs. I've heard of waking until you reach your first bar for your first cup of coffee. We don't have any portable coffee packets here in the U.S., but is there something to buy in Spain where I can get my morning fix? Maybe a packet to add to a cup of water that has caffeine and coffee flavor? What time is the coffee usually served (if there is some offered) in the albergues? What do the other early risers do while the rest of the pilgrims are still snoring?

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Desayuno in albergues typically begins at 7 a.m. Bars open at about that time for coffee, too. Very few albergues prevent pilgrims from rising and leaving earlier, but some notable ones do wake pilgrims with music at 6 to 6:30 a.m. It is not necessary to make your own coffee earlier unless you have spare time on your hands after packing and preparing to leave in the morning. You might be hard pressed to commandeer the kitchen for an early cup of coffee. It likely will be filled with pilgrims packing their packs.

 

[texastrekker]

can u bring your own instant coffee from starbucks and a heating coil and make some coffee in kitchen when u get up?

sure hope so because i plan to do the same!

 

[ria]

Yes, if there is a stove or a microwave in the albergue. I always have some nescafe packets in my pack for 'emergencies', like no bar around or bar closed for no clear reason. I even drink it cold when i can't heat it.
ria


Verstuurd van mijn GT-I9100G met Tapatalk

 

[Pieces]

buy some nescafe and put a decent amount in a plastic bag, and leave the rest at the albergue and you will have cofee for your mornings. I always bring coffee when i travel but not when on a camino...

apart from that theres really no need to get up that early not just because you wake up everyone else, but also because one should sleep as long as possible when being physically active. Your body regenerates while sleeping (laying in your sleeping ag drifting in and out counts towards this), which for me at least, meant that every night i would feel the familiar throbbing in my thighs as all my days damage was undone and new muscles formed... For this process the body ideally requires 8 hours

Apart from that I found, being a coffee addic myself that i didn't really need that much coffeee on the camino, and i did fine in the morning without. Also a lot of places have coffeemachines (you put in a coin and get a cupog coffee, usually €1)

lastly the days first cop of coffee tastes so much better after walking 10km. Then 10km further down the way from the first cup, one can contemplate why the first 10k took 2 hrs and the last took 4...

 

[sulu]

Okay, when I wake up in the morning, which is usually between 4:30-5:00 because of my work day body clock, the first thing I need is my morning cup of coffee!

I also like to start the day with a large coffee. I find that the problem with carrying coffee and making a coffee in the albergue is the milk, or lack of it. It is now possible to buy sachets of coffee with milk and sugar added, fine if you take sugar in your coffee.
You will find that you will discover your own pattern for mornings and it is unlikely to be the one you planned. I frequently had a chocolate drink before starting, it is easy to get hold of. Then walked the first 10k dreaming of my morning coffee, it was the reward for having walked that far. This does, of course, depend which camino you are doing. I assume it is the Frances but if you are doing the VdlP it is different entirely.
Buen camino!
Sue

 

[Anniesantiago]

You can buy a dozen little tubes of Nescafe for around 2 euros or less.
It's pretty good coffee if you have an immersion heater to boil your water.
But I've never had a problem finding morning coffee.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Also a lot of places have coffee machines

However, most are a pale imitation of "real" coffee!

 

[Abbeydore]

Also a lot of places have coffee machines

However, most are a pale imitation of "real" coffee!

Exactly, I wouldn't be seen dead drinking Nesc'-what-ever-its-called, The coffee on the Camino is usually so good, it's well worth waiting for, & served by a lovely Spanish person who takes pride in making & serving it too

 

[miguel_gp]

...... The coffee on the Camino is usually so good, it's well worth waiting for, & served by a lovely Spanish person who takes pride in making & serving it too

Es verdad.
Mig

 

[CaminoGen]

YOu will soon realize that, on the Camino, you will develop new habits. Although I understand that one wants some home comforts while away, you seem to want to bring a lot of "home" with you. May I recommend letting go a bit. Also, getting up at 4:30 will not make you any friends...

 

[yogabanana]

Funny, I stopped drinking coffee 7 years ago, but reading the forum for the last few months I have decided to start again once I hit Spain. Those cafe con leches sound wonderful ! I am flying out tomorrow, to start from SJPP on the 11 th!

 

[virveb]

Camino made me a coffee drinker. I love cafe con leche, but not 4.30 in the morning.Get up by 6 and you will get your coffee after some kms.

 

[Abbeydore]

Funny, I stopped drinking coffee 7 years ago, but reading the forum for the last few months I have decided to start again once I hit Spain. Those cafe con leches sound wonderful ! I am flying out tomorrow, to start from SJPP on the 11 th!

That's amazing hooked & you have not started yet! Buen Camino

 

[camino-david]

But Nescafe is not coffee, it is just..............Nescafe.
And the machine sounds just like the 'coffee' it makes....gurgle, gurgle, gurgle.
There's nothing like the first cafe con leche of the day - heaven and life saving.

 

[Pieces]

it is quite obvious that you guys cannot relate to the addic mindframe. I will quite happily suck on a day-old coffee filter to get my fix if i have to :shock:

 

[dougfitz]

it is quite obvious that you guys cannot relate to the addic mindframe. I will quite happily suck on a day-old coffee filter to get my fix if i have to :shock:

Sad, Pieces. So sad.

 

[jdpiguet]

Pieces said:

For this process the body ideally requires 8 hours

8 hours only??? :roll:
During my first week, I went to bed just past 20:00 and had trouble to stand up at 7:00 when the hospitalero(a) came to wake me!

But I admit that a small Nescafe saves my life sometimes...
I can remember very precisely this day in Villafranca Montes de Oca, raining, the smog at the level of the 2nd floor, cold like November can be, being the last to take my breakfast in the old school without any other soul.
And this small tube of brown powder in a cup of hot water was the only argument for starting the walk....

 

[Janet Lee]

Sue - can you please clarify why the VdlP is different regarding morning coffe? My first Camino will be the VdlP next spring. I will have no other experience with which to compare. Please tell me that coffee is not a raeity on my chosen route!

 

[rickster]

How does this cafe con leche go down for us "black only" coffee drinkers?

 

[Anniesantiago]

You can order black coffee.

 

[eurojet]

Ah, nice to know I have some company in the coffee department. I think I'll contact NASA here in the U.S. and ask how the astronauts get their fix. Maybe someone out there can invent coffee tablets that dissolve and heat up in a cup of water. I like the idea of the little packets that have everything in them, and will have to try some Nescafe just to see what all the buzz is about it

 

[Anniesantiago]

Haha! I happen to love those little Nescafé packets especially if there is no "real" coffee in sight. Starbucks also makes a really good instant called Via?

The coffee machine coffee scares me though. :twisted:

 

[Pieces]

Pieces said:

For this process the body ideally requires 8 hours

8 hours only??? :roll:
During my first week, I went to bed just past 20:00 and had trouble to stand up at 7:00 when the hospitalero(a) came to wake me!

not really sure how much more sleep will highten the process, but actually the muscles themself take longer. Usually it is recommended one only exercises every 48 hours to give the body time to restitude and rebuild...

I too had nights sleeping longer than 8 hrs, dropping dead on my bunk as soon as i had dinner....

 

[Abbeydore]

Well, we took our chances, we carried as little as possible, & enjoyed our surprises, now somedays they were so cold it was going to have to be a cola-coa, & this was amazing because the last one I had in Santiago was the best, the rest were very good; the one I had in Portmarian was the worst because I was in a (very)foul mood, & I didn't stir it, & I nearly choked to death because as I hadn't stir it, I ended up drinking a mouth-full of dry powder :rollI got my co-mup-ance :lol: ) . & then we found this chocolate shop near Hotel Suso serving all manner of chocolate drinks - Heaven :mrgreen:

 

[na2than]

for those that need the first coffee of the day to be first thing in the day there are 2 easy options.

a)nescafe milk and 2 sugar sachets....other brands avaliable

b)plain instant coffee sachets

most small supermarkets stock the sachets and one pack purchased in each largish population area will do you a week

the coffee culture in Spain revolves around small coffees drunk regulary...with or with out milk. In the morning a half shot of brandy may be added. Many cafes will if you ask for a escafe manage to knock you up something weak....but the main coffee offerings are expresso based


love the heating coil idea

 

[tyrrek]

for those that need the first coffee of the day to be first thing in the day there are 2 easy options.

a)nescafe milk and 2 sugar sachets....other brands avaliable

b)plain instant coffee sachets

There's a third option. Go to the bar and get a 'carajillo'. The word supposedly derives from 'a bit of courage'. It's coffee with brandy (or rum).

OK, just a suggestion...

 

[Alan Pearce]

When I was on the VdlP last year, Ismael from Brazil expressed the opinion that "cafe con leche is the fuel of the camino". In the mornings especially!

Alan

Be brave. Life is joyous.

 

[anniethenurse]

When I was on the VdlP last year, Ismael from Brazil expressed the opinion that "cafe con leche is the fuel of the camino". In the mornings especially!

So true - have to get a cup of coffee in the mornings. But there will always be a bar open within a couple of hours, at least on the Vasco and on the Frances.
buen camino
annie

 

[Abbeydore]

Annie think I need to drink even more coffee, that's some fix to your avatar!
Love it
David

 

[anniethenurse]

:::my nose and hair in the avatar:::
I think I am going to get some coffee right now!
(David, your pics from your latest walk?)

 

[Abbeydore]

:::my nose and hair in the avatar:::
I think I am going to get some coffee right now!
(David, your pics from your latest walk?)

Just doodles, will scan & sensor :lol:
Might have virtual prizes if people can guess where :?:

 

[yogabanana]

I have been in Spain for two days now and I am officially hooked! Cafe con leche and chocolate croissants!

 

[DesertRain]

As an espresso snob, I must say that Spain is heaven on earth. Good espresso in every bar, cafe and restaurant I have visited.

As an occasional migraine sufferer, I also carry http://www.starbucks.com/coffee/via for the immediate caffeine jolt that can help. As much as I dislike Starbucks in general, these MUCH better than Nescafe IMHO. And the tiny packets weigh nearly nothing and take up almost no room in the pack.

 

[annakappa]

I learnt to drink "coffee as it should be" when I lived in Italy, back in the 60's (until then I had only known about Nescafé. What a difference)! Since then Nescafé is simply a hot drink! So, I became hooked on coffee! Spanish coffee, served correctly, is on parr with the Italian relative. So....after having had a very "unfortunate experience" on our very first Pilgrimage, when we found no bar between Zubiri and Trinidad de Arre (4 hours walk), we decided to be smarter next time. We took a small stainless steel thermos which we filled up at a bar the night before, thus hoping to have at least one decent cup of coffee before setting out in the morning. Actually it was more of a hindrance than useful. After that time, we have gone back to hoping (desperately) to find a decent cup of coffee within an hour of leaving the albergue! However, once bitten, twice shy... We check out in the evening where we can expect to get our morning fix. Anne

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Spanish coffee, served correctly, is on par with the Italian relative.

I, too, can be described as a coffee snob. I examined the beans in a grinder, and they seemed to be a blend of light roast, medium roast, and dark roast. The restaurant supply companies have found a good mix!

 

[Sagalouts]

wow what a bunch of addicts,all this talk of the morning fix as if they are talking about drugs so Sad-now if I can turn you on to the soothing refreshing taste of a good large cup of hot tea,unfortunately you won't find this on the Camino,the Spanish just don't do proper tea which is why on my first Camino I carried a very-small electric kettle and proper English black tea,I have since graduated to a mountaineering stove and love preparing my morning cuppa while the addicts rush to that first crowded bar falling over all the stacked backpacks in the rush for their fix plus as a frugal (tight) Yorkshireman I reflect on how much this costs over a full Camino, up to 200 euro's and more for the heavy users.
Please reflect on this terrible addiction,there is still time to turn from the dark-side and enter the tranquil world of the English tea drinker.
Ian

 

[Pieces]

actually the act of spending + €200 on coffee is a generous atempt at saving the spanish economy by conscientious world citizens...

are you of scottish decent ?

 

[BlackDog]

are you of scottish decent ?

He says he is a Yorkshireman which is like a Scotsman with the pity removed :wink:

 

[tyrrek]

As a Scotsman living in Yorkshire I find the tone of this thread highly offensive. :lol: I think I need a coffee.

 

[annakappa]

Please reflect on this terrible addiction,there is still time to turn from the dark-side and enter the tranquil world of the English tea drinker.
Ian

Well Ian, I am actually English (of Yorkshire descent), but apart from a cup of Earl Grey once in a blue moon, I have to say that I much prefer a decent cup of coffee! Anne

 

[Pieces]

are you of scottish decent ?

He says he is a Yorkshireman which is like a Scotsman with the pity removed :wink:

scarry :shock:

 

[JohnnieWalker]

are you of scottish decent ?

He says he is a Yorkshireman which is like a Scotsman with the pity removed :wink:

What's with all of this racism? It shouldn't be allowed.

I start the day with a whisky. Highly recommended. Easily obtained, highly portable, needs no preparation and always works.

Try it.

 

[Pieces]

are you of scottish decent ?

He says he is a Yorkshireman which is like a Scotsman with the pity removed :wink:

What's with all of this racism? It shouldn't be allowed.

I start the day with a whisky. Highly recommended. Easily obtained, highly portable, needs no preparation and always works.

Try it.

Sorry Johnnie, didn't see you there

*hangs her head in shame*

 

[JohnnieWalker]

No worries Pieces - you can buy me several by way of atonement when you reach Santiago

 

[Pieces]

No worries Pieces - you can buy me several by way of atonement when you reach Santiago

not to mention how it will contribute to my attempt at saving the world economy...

which btw if I may add, is a very pleasent occupation me being a female with good shopping genes and all...

 

[FaithandGratitude]

actually the act of spending + €200 on coffee is a generous atempt at saving the spanish economy by conscientious world citizens...

are you of scottish decent ?

All pilgrims can do their bit by buying FairTrade tea or coffee and making it themselves (I too love a cup of tea in the morning, Ian) OR by buying local. Either way you are supporting workers and a fragile economy somewhere. :wink:

 

[sulu]

can you please clarify why the VdlP is different regarding morning coffe? My first Camino will be the VdlP next spring. I will have no other experience with which to compare. Please tell me that coffee is not a raeity on my chosen route!

Hi Janet,
The VdlP is different because there are often no places to stop between stops! On the Frances I liked to get cracking in the morning and stop for a coffee after about 10kms, the idea of that coffee kept me going and sitting down for a while was great. I've only done the VdlP from Seville to Caceres, quite often there was a bar open in the village or town and it was possible to have breakfast before starting, sometimes there wasn't and it meant having something to eat and drink in the albergue. It was then whatever you carry until the next stop. It's a different way of thinking. The worst occasions were when my guide book told me there was a bar but there wasn't, or it wasn't open :cry:
It was rare not to find a bar open for breakfast but sometimes they didn't open till 8 and as the weather was hot when I walked I preferred to start at 7, so as not to be walking in the heat later. Don't worry you will sort out what suits you and if you haven't walked the Frances you will not start with a mind set but just find what suits you. The VdlP is great, enjoy.
Sue

 

[mariposa627]

Over the years, my caffeine addiction has gotten better. In my 20's and 30's, I used to drink up to two 2liter bottles of cola drinks. I now drink NO sodas and have one coffee per day. I had been drinking two or three coffees until I decided that I was doing the Camino next year. I am appreciating the extra money I have to go shopping for Camino supplies I love coffee not only the caffeine but the routine of it. can't wait to have cafe con leche on the camino, at whatever time I can-I can wait a little bit after walking or not!
Ahhhhhhh....
Have good day all!

 

[na2than]

All pilgrims can do their bit by buying FairTrade tea or coffee


i own a coffee shop/deli

for fair trade you pay an extra £1.50 per kilo...this generates approx £30.00 in fairtrade surcharge

growers are lucky to see 50p per kilo extra...for this reason i stopped selling it

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Fair Trade is a commercial brand. For a fee its owners licence commercial firms the right to use the brand in marketing, and they expect to make a profit out of doing so. Coffee producer cooperatives pay a fee to become certified Fair Trade producers, and a fee is paid at packer level in the consuming country, possibly on behalf of the packer, distributor or retailer. Nobody in the Fairtrade industry is willing to disclose how much extra they charge for their branded coffee, how much of this extra charge reaches the third world, how much reaches the farmers or whether the farmers make a profit from Fairtrade. In four cases it has been possible to find out. One British café chain was passing on less than one percent of the extra charged to the exporting cooperative; in Finland, Valkila, Haaparanta and Niemi found that consumers paid much more for Fairtrade, and that only 11.5% reached the exporter. Kilian, Jones, Pratt and Villalobos talk of US Fairtrade coffee getting $5 per lb extra at retail, of which the exporter would have received only 2%. Mendoza and Bastiaensen calculated that in the UK only 1.6% to 18% of the extra charged for one product line reached the farmer. All these studies assume that the importers paid the full Fairtrade price, which is not necessarily the case.

Good ideas often are initiated when someone can make money from it. It may be naive so think that fair-trade anything is more than a marketing tool.

 

[tyrrek]

No worries Pieces - you can buy me several by way of atonement when you reach Santiago

Be careful of that Pieces, John. She's already volunteered that Scotland the Brave isn't good marching music and then accused us of being tightwads. Peligrosa.

 

[Pieces]

No worries Pieces - you can buy me several by way of atonement when you reach Santiago

Be careful of that Pieces, John. She's already volunteered that Scotland the Brave isn't good marching music and then accused us of being tightwads. Peligrosa.

I did NOT :evil:

I just said I wasnt likely to bring it in my Ipod...

BUT

if Johnnie brings his bagpipe and comes meet me playing Scotland the brave, I promise that not only will I buy him a double single malt I wil also walk in tune AND get hold of a walking stick and walk ahead as drum major...

 

[tyrrek]

Ha ha! OK, I slightly misquoted you. I'm sure you would be a fantastic Drum Major. Actually I'm not that sure, but it would be interesting to watch. Buen Camino!

 

[Pieces]

of course I will be fantastic...

 

[JohnnieWalker]

tsk...tsk... you aren't taking any of this seriously. Breakfast should be simple and not involve marching bands or (for heaven's sake) anyone being the drum major.

Relax, get out of bed, meet the day, pack your rucksack, get dressed, pour a large whisky, contemplate the journey ahead, pour a large whisky, look at the weather, go on have another, then set off...just one for the road.

This formula works with 100% of pilgrims. Promise.

 

[Pieces]

I'm sorry Johnnie, I just really wanted to se your kilt

maybe you can come after lunch ?

 

[Abbeydore]

Where was your most refreshing coffee?

 

[na2than]

tsk...tsk... you aren't taking any of this seriously. Breakfast should be simple and not involve marching bands or (for heaven's sake) anyone being the drum major.

Relax, get out of bed, meet the day, pack your rucksack, get dressed, pour a large whisky, contemplate the journey ahead, pour a large whisky, look at the weather, go on have another, then set off...just one for the road.

This formula works with 100% of pilgrims. Promise.

I TAKE GREAT ISSUE WITH THIS POST!!!

the "on trend" way of walking is to be lightweight...bottles of Scotch or hip flasks are heavy....that was why the Scottish bladder sacs for rucksacks were invented .Has NASA invented dehydrated Scotch yet in powder form....just add water?