In learned conversation with Ooma Hilary!

This time on ‘in conversation with’ we’ve been lucky enough to find a moment, over a cappuccino, with a remarkable woman working flat-out, together with the Bitou 10 Foundation, to uplift education for all in the Plett area. ‘Mama Hilary’ is on a mission to provide structures to facilitate development in Bitou’s ten government schools. The main focus is on literacy, numeracy, curriculum leadership and school management and to provide teachers with the necessary skills, enthusiasm, passion and pride to pass this on to the scholars.

Her husband, David (who happens to be the uncle of Dave Matthews – of Dave Matthews’ Band fame), is no stranger to education himself. David started Maru-a-pula, one of THE most successful schools in Southern Africa in Gaborone, Botswana. It is an absolute success story thanks largely to partnerships both local and across the continent.

Here’s what Hilary had to say..

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1) What do people call you?
Hilary, Mama Hilary, Mabatho, Mom, Ooma

2) espresso, cappuccino, latte or flat-white and why?
three-quarter cappuccino. Because it’s Magnifique!

3) what’s keeping you busy these days?
Education renewal: transformation

4) What book/magazine is next to your bed at the moment and how is it?
“Vienna” by Eva Menasse – about the disintegration of Jewish families in Vienna before and after World War II. Beautifully written.

5) Tell us briefly about the most interesting news/ideas you’ve heard in the last week?
“That the steady and frequent flapping of the fragile wings of a butterfly over the jungles of the Amazon River Basin can affect weather patterns over Detroit thousands of kilometres away.”

6) What is your “most-played” music at the moment?
Ali Farke Toure; Bach – Goldberg Variations; & Partitas; Gotan Project c/o the two kind Karins!

7) Where are you spending most your time on the web?
Too busy to do much web visiting

3 interesting reads to accompany your latte…

We’ve been surfing the net at doubleshot, and have turned up the following few interesting links. They don’t all relate directly to coffee, but we’ll try our best to make it seem like they do anyway!

1. Bean Town

For those who don’t have the time or money to travel there themselves, reading the New York Times “City” section is a more time and cost-effective escape to the Big Apple. Immerse yourself in your screen for a few minutes on a Sunday afternoon… no plane ticket required!

“Bean Town” was an article appearing recently about the burgeoning and exciting authentic coffee scene which is growing in West Village-ish like areas around NYC. It’s almost enough to tempt one into leaving sunny Plett for a week or two to check it all out!

Doubleshot – probably wouldn’t be too out of place in the West Village…

We particularly like this quote:

“What you see going on now is a de- Starbuckification, if you will,” said Suzanne Wasserman… “People are yearning for authenticity.”

Did she really say “de-Starbuckification“? Surely has to be our word-of-the-day!

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2. Another use for used coffee grounds

Here’s a bit from tree-hugger website – treehugger.com. Written by a self-confessed “fungal-kingdom obsessive” it talks about “using old coffee grounds to cultivate delicious oyster mushrooms“.

Doubleshot have already experimented with recycling used coffee-grounds as body scrubs. This presents another option… can we maybe look forward to ‘espresso oyster mushrooms’ on our famous doubleshot sandwiches soon?!

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3. Antarctica – where a good coffee is always welcome!

A little known fact is that doubleshot co-founder Karin S spent much of early 2004 shuttling between South America and Antarctica while working on a research ice-breaker… and has been de-frosting ever since!

Well the other day the Boston Globe ‘big picture’ – arguably one of the most interesting and well-read photo-journalism websites out there – featured the cold continent (Antarctica) with some breathtaking pics to jog Karin’s memory. Well worth checking yourself!

A good place for a coffee!

In quiet conversation at doubleshot!

You may recall a few weeks ago we featured a photo-session at doubleshot with Claire Sternberg and Klaus Oppenheimer which produced some pretty innovative shots of our micro-foamed cappuccini. We managed to catch Claire ‘in conversation’ before she jetted off back to Jo’burg after the shoot…

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1) What do people call you?
Claire. Or Clazst. 

2) espresso, cappuccino, latte or flat-white and why?
Caffé Latte is my favourite. WHY? Mmm, it tastes good and mild. I don’t like very strong coffee, so for me it is the perfect drink.

3) what’s keeping you busy these days?
I spend most my time in front of a monitor with design/photography/multimedia and editing. Non-stop. I don’t know how I could survive without a computer.

Clazst lends her photography skills to the doubleshot microfoam…

4) What book/magazine is next to your bed at the moment and how is it?
Pix Photography Magazine, House & Leisure, and a book “Master of Love – Don Miguel “

5) Tell us briefly about the most interesting news/ideas you’ve heard in the last week?
I am inspired by DIY. There are so many interesting things one can do and I think it is great that I can literally do anything and everything myself and with my own hands.

6) What is your “most-played” music at the moment?
Hmmm, I’m unable to hear, so unable to follow music; but my heart has rhythm and beat.

7) Where are you spending most your time on the web?
Facebook and reading news on news24.co.za

Obamamania hits doubleshot…

Today at doubleshot, there was overwhelming joy at Barack Obama’s election as President of the USA. Many hope, that Obama will be a powerful example to politicians here at home…

“hmmm… if only this was a doubleshot latte”

The US President-elect is a coffee-drinker himself (must be the Kenyan side of the family showing through). Rumour has it Barack has moved swiftly to prioritise a South African business-trip to allow himself the chance to pop in and sample some of doubleshot’s finest, inbetween meetings with JayZee…

Kenya, as it happens, seems to be celebrating Obama’s victory almost more than the Americans themselves. Today (Thursday 6th) has been declared a public holiday in the African country, and last night the makers of the local ‘Senator‘ beer launched a limited-edition ‘President‘ brew to commemmorate the event!