Coffee and kids

I am sure there are coffee lovers out there. Coffee comes in all kinds: espresso, cappucino, latte, mocha, and so on. Just visit Starbucks for an idea of how many ways coffee can now be brewed.

But today, I am not here to talk about coffee. After all, although I do visit Starbucks every onces in a while, and I have my 3-in-1 coffee every morning, I am not a connoiseur of coffee. I don't really have a strong preference for any particular type of coffee, or how it is brewed.

What I want to talk about is coffee and kids. My wife's ex-colleague is now living in Italy. Whenever they come back to visit, we would try to meet up. It is a great chance for me to meet their kids too. The elder one is a 5-year old girl, the younger one is a 2-year old boy.

My first surprise came when the girl wanted a coffee when we stopped over for a drink at The Coffee Bean. Not many 5-year old kids ask for coffee in Singapore. But that is not all. After talking to their father, I found out that the reason why the 2-year old boy doesn't ask for coffee is because the little guy only drinks Italian coffee. Imagine! A 2-year old coffee connoiseur.

The story goes that they went to tour in France. On the way back, the little boy never asked for coffee. The moment they crossed the border into Italy, at the very next stop they made to have a short rest, the little guy wanted coffee.

Last night, we were having dinner together, and ordered espresso after dinner. Well, Singapore's espresso is nothing like Italy's, of course. Apparently, the little guy could smell it too. When his father tried to feed him some espresso, he rejected it. His elder sister, however, had no problems with Singaporean coffee.

Now, if they were brought up in France, instead of coffee, it could be wine...