Is breakfasting at Starbucks when abroad really traveling? I ask that myself when I enter one. Believe me, there are plenty of reasons not to enter one. Number one for skipping a Starbucks is that they don’t have scones, at least not in the British Starbucks establishments I’ve been in so far. But, despite this sconelessness, these are my reasons for frequenting this American franchise.
10. Like it or not, Starbucks is usually there. In London and Paris, certainly. In smaller cities, yes.
8. It’s open early. Like many Americans, I like an early start to my day, my lunch, and my dinner; yet, for instance, some of the coffee shops in Bath didn’t open till 10 a.m. 10 a.m.! That is late for Americans—even Americans on vacation. On this trip in the UK, the Starbucks opened at 7:30 a.m. By American standards, that’s still kind of late. And, maybe it’s the American working people and commuters who drive the 5:30 a.m. opening time in the U.S. Tourists tend to be out and about when museums and other tourist sites start to open, often about 10 a.m.
9. The counter people are friendly. This is a big plus in famously snooty Paris, where ordering a café au lait at a small bistro can be an exercise in indifference. The Scots, the Welsh, the Irish, and the British seem friendlier. But at a Starbucks, openness seems to be baked in along with the chocolate chips in the muffins.
7. Starbucks tables are big enough for laptops. And a coffee and a pastry. Also maybe even a guidebook or a map. Tiny, round Parisian tables are picturesque, but, at a small table like that, a writer might only be able to accommodate a small moleskin notebook. Many coffee shops in the British Isles do have larger tables, but at a Starbucks, I can be sure there will be enough room.
6. A Starbucks is usually found in walkable tourist areas. That’s where Americans tend to be. We’re not usually in a foreign suburb with a car. Starbucks are usually not hard to find, and they’re not hidden away in some dodgy neighborhood. They’re on the boardwalk, the esplanade, in the shopping corridor, or at the corner of Main and Center.
5. You instantly pick out the logo and the name. You know the Kelly green-and-white circle with the two-tailed mermaid “Siren” is coffee and carbs. The font is Santana Black. Recognizable anywhere. I was walking yesterday and saw an “Aldi” in the distance. Was it worth the walk? Was it food? Or clothes? Or a dental clinic? (It’s actually a chain of grocery stores.)
4. Sometimes you just don’t have the patience for something unknown. It takes enormous energy to figure out new stuff. To be outrageously obvious, travel confronts us with new names, new schedules, new cultures, new vocabulary, and new attitudes. And we often
haven’t been sleeping all that well. Weird lumpy beds with a guy snoring in the next room, two girls excitedly yakking after coming back from the bar, or a shower that didn’t get above tepid can put a damper on even the sunniest of mornings. So sometimes old, familiar stuff is good. Even an old, familiar franchise.
3. A tall, skinny latte is comfort food. To me, anyway. It helps me cope with the aforementioned lumpy bed, guy snoring, or girls yakking.
2. It has wi-fi. If you haven’t been abroad in a while, you might think that most places—restaurants, hotels, coffee shops—would have wi-fi by now. Not so. But Starbucks is a reliable place to find it. A friend of mine likes to patronize local libraries, where it’s quiet and you’ll be charged just a small fee for Internet access. Even a Starbucks pretty much expects you to at least buy a coffee, if not coffee and a muffin.
1. In this uncertain world, there’s a certain good, fuzzy feeling when you walk up to a counter where you understand the ordering language and can revel in the friendly ambience. Oh, the Costas, the Caffee Neros and other non-American chains seem to also have adopted or parodied Starbucks’ friendly coffee culture, but there’s nothing quite like just walking into a Starbucks, shedding the façade of “I’m-so-worldly-and-I-have-a-lot-of-energy-to-figure-new-stuff-out,” and ordering a damn tall, skinny latte and getting on with the day. And Starbucks was born as a company in Seattle in 1971, the same year I took my first trip to England.
Sitting here just now on the second floor of a Caffe Nero in this new-to-me town, I just noticed the local Starbucks–a smaller one–across the way on New Bond Street. Will it be “traveling” if I go there tomorrow? By wide definition, most certainly.
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