Coffee is something that created so many memories in Jaco. There’s just something about sitting down for coffee with a friend that makes you feel so at home. It can also be a great icebreaker when getting to know someone. Just ask, oh what’s your Starbucks order? That can 1) let you see a little into someone’s personality and 2) start a fun conversation. In fact, talking about Starbucks and coffee shops was how I became friends with my closest friend from 11n11, Kel! We were painting at the mural wall the first day and I found out that she was a manager at Starbucks and knew how to make my all time favorite drink. From then on, it was a hunt to find someone in Jaco that could make it for me. Even though that excursion was unsuccessful, so many amazing memories were made from those coffee adventures.
My favorite day in Jaco ended with coffee from the best restaurant. Kel and I had set out after ministry to a place called Tattoo House to get piercings. After looking at the earring selection, we decided it would be best to take a rain check. With all this free time, we decided to head to a place called Jaco Walk, which is full of restaurants and cute little kiosks with desserts. We went to this taco/burger place and it was AMAZING. Sometimes you just really crave some food that feels like home lol. The coolest part about this place is that a lot of the seating are actually swings. I sat in the swing and swung for over an hour. It was so awesome to be able to get hang out and get to know my friend even better. After we headed home, we of course had to stop in the best restaurant in Jaco, the French Bakery. Throughout my time at Ocean’s Edge, Kel had been getting me to drink coffee everyday and I started drinking it almost black. So when she got black coffee, I felt I had to as well. And I actually drank the whole thing and enjoyed it. After another hour of hanging out and talking about our lives, we finally headed back to the base. The funny part is that it stated raining for the first time really since we had been there. So to top off the best day, we sprinted back. We were still soaking wet by the end, but it was just so fun.
In Jaco, there were 2-3 main coffee spots. There was Tosso, the cheap one with so so coffee, but it was close and had great wifi. Cafe Britt was the fancy one in Jaco Walk that had fun seating. And Bohio was the most popular, with fun, delicious drinks and a cute place to hang out. Every time you pasted one of these spots, you would 99/100 times see a World Racer or Semesters group. It was the hang out spot. However, there was a well kept secret, the mysterious Brioche Cafe. The first time I went out for breakfast with Kelsey was at the secret coffee shop with amazing iced coffee and wifi. When we got there, I still expected a few people to be there, but it was empty. The cutest place all to ourselves. That was such a great time to get to know each other. After 11n11 left, it got discovered by the rest of the group, but it was so awesome while it lasted.
Bohio Cafe holds a special place in my heart. I didn’t go there often, but every time that I did I left with a great new memory. One that sticks out to me was my one on one with Lauren. We had delayed it a few days and decided to finally go one day before church. Then we would just Uber to Horizon. We got there and had a great conversation about my experience so far. What we didn’t know is that everyone else at the base also had the same idea to get Bohio before church. What started as a conversation with just Lauren turned in to me talking about deep topics with her and having my friends jump in every once in a while. It was so much fun and cracked me up. It was so cool to see how other people, not even from my squad were interested in my walk with God and wanted to answer any questions I might have. When it was about time to leave, my friend Victoria even stayed behind and Ubered with us. Even if it didn’t mean much to the group that was there, they made me feel so loved from caring about my conversation. Part of my other favorite day took place at Bohio with iced coffee as well. For my Sabbath day, I decided that I wanted to just kind of chill at the base and see where the day took me. The only plans I had that day was French Bakerying it up with Kel. Yes, we went there so much we turned it into a verb. After we had the best French toast of my life, we headed back to the base and I kind of just chilled because I had no plans. That soon changed when Kel invited me to go hang out with her, Victoria, and Chelsea. I was soooo excited to go spend time with them. They are like the coolest group of people ever, and I felt so special to even have been asked to hang out with them. We headed out and decided to hit a cafe called Mundaka. We got some amazing smoothies and headed for the beach. After Sabbathing at the beach for a few hours, it was decided that we were going to head back the base. But plans never ever stay the same. We ended up stopping at Bohio and all got to talk for a while. One of my fave memories was when a cat jumped up onto the bench we were sitting at and Kel FLEW off. I have never seen someone jump up so fast in my life. I’m really sorry for laughing, it just really took me off guard. Chelsea and Victoria stayed back while Kelsey and I went shorts shopping. After waiting in line for waaaaayyy too long, we walked all the way back to Bohio, which anyone who has been there knows is a trek. We got back and had missed them by like 5 minutes. The memories that I made because of that coffee shop are ones I will never forget.
I could go on and on about more stories related to coffee, but I will just finish with my most cherished moments related to coffee. Kelsey is the most knowledgable person I know about coffee, so I took her advice and started drinking coffee everyday at the base. I loved waking up every morning and seeing her and Victoria sipping their coffee, reading their bibles. It really inspired me to start doing the same. I would get up, make my coffee, and go out to the couch to do my quiet time in the morning. I was always greeted with a smile and a hug, which made me feel so loved and like I was a little part of their group. Thank you coffee for all of the memories.
