Photo Friday: Cafe Kultura & Tea Time

Sara Naumann Photo Friday Cafe Kultura
And the idea of just wandering off to a cafe with a notebook and writing and seeing where that takes me for awhile is just bliss.—J. K. Rowling. Cafe Kultura, the view from the outside.
 
I started a new self-care ritual this year: Every Wednesday evening, I go out by myself for a cup of tea. I take a couple of magazines, a book or some writing I want to do, head to a cafe and have a cuppa. This is my time to a) get out of my studio space, b) get a short walk to our little city center, and c) drink a cup of tea that I did not make myself (why does that always taste better?) and read something with no interruption. It’s easy to schedule, inexpensive and so worth it.

The only trick? Finding a cafe around here. We have some restaurants. We have some nightclubs. We have a lot of sort of dodgy-looking places where you can buy beer or vodka. There are cafes, too, but wintertime in Sopot is dead time, and Poland doesn’t really have the cafe culture you find in places like Amsterdam or Berlin or Paris. There are no tourists here in the winter, and not many locals go to cafes in the first place. So when it’s not summer, several of the cafes on the tourist strip simply close down—or, if they’re open, they’re deserted.  Try sitting in a cafe where you are the only person and where customers are clearly unexpected. It’s slightly unnerving.

But last week I got lucky: I found Cafe Kultura. One block off the tourist strip, this snug little cafe is partially hidden behind a giant, heavy door nestled down a couple of steps from the sidewalk. I had passed by once in the daytime and thought, hmmm, what’s this place? At night you can see the candles glowing from inside, and a few folding chairs out front. So last week I thought I’d give it a try.

Well.

It’s perfect.

Giant comfy couches and overstuffed chairs. Thrift-store oil paintings on the crowded walls. Kitschy decor like someone’s grandmother’s attic. And books stacked willy-nilly everywhere. Lace and doilies and candles and flowers. Polish music. And the.best.pear.tea.ever. Not to mention, the chocolate cheesecake. Even better? There are people in here. Meeting, chatting, sipping tea and eating dessert. It’s lovely. It’s cozy. It’s the best 20 zloty ($5.28) I spend all week.

Happy Friday. (Looking forward to Wednesday.)

 

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3 thoughts on “Photo Friday: Cafe Kultura & Tea Time

  1. Agreed, Janet! It is the theme for this month…I’ve been doing Susannah Conway’s April Love and it’s been a lot of fun, and very thought-provoking. 🙂

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