Guest blog: Italian espressos

Recently, I had the good fortune to trade rainy Amsterdam for sunny Naples. I had been to Rome a long time ago, but I didn't really know much about Italy. Now I know a lot more, although it would have been nice if I had known all this before I left.

After arriving at Naples airport, I decided to immediately immerse myself in the culture. So what do you do then? You order a pizza. After this warm welcome, it was time to take it a step further and have coffee. I normally love to finish a good meal with a cappuccino. In Italy, they see things differently. The waiter thought I had gone crazy when I wanted to order a cappuccino at half past ten in the evening. Italians only drink cappuccino in the morning. It's not done to drink coffee with hot milk after dinner. Okay, clear. In the end, stubborn as I am, I stood my ground and ten minutes later I still got my cappuccino.

The next day I wanted to try an espresso. After all, that's what Italy is somewhat known for, isn't it? Full of good cheer, I walked to a coffee bar and asked for an espresso in my best Italian. That was mistake number two. Espresso is the machine with which the coffee is made, not the name of a strong coffee. If you want an espresso, you simply order a caffè.

Fortunately, I'm not easily deterred and a few minutes later I still had my espresso. After I got my order, I looked for a table. I soon found out that this coffee bar had no tables at all. Well, I never. What café doesn't have tables? A bit amateurish, so I decided to complain at the bar. After I explained my frustration, the bartender burst out laughing. What turned out to be the case? Italians never drink coffee while sitting. You down your espresso in one go and then continue with your daily activities.

Never knew. After this third blunder, I decided enough was enough. I didn't touch coffee for the rest of the holiday. Much safer.

- By guest blogger: Lisanne Buijsse -