Cafes I Have Known: Tennessee Edition

When I land in a new town, the first things I look for are a great cafe and a great used bookstore. 

Here are two of my picks to take the guesswork out of cafe hopping on your next visit to Nashville or Knoxville.

Visiting the Ryman Auditorium in Tennessee was a dream come true. 

Frothy Monkey - Nashville

A pleasant bike ride from downtown, the Frothy Monkey is the go-to hangout for Belmont University students and organic food connoisseurs from the nearby Hillsboro and Melrose neighborhoods.

I chanced there when I was couch surfing around the block, near Dolly Parton’s motor coach livery.

I achieved total brain freeze from the strong iced coffee and achieved total aesthetic piety from their locally sourced salads.

My songwriter hosts were giddy to receive a bag of FM’s espresso roast as a parting gift.

Yours Truly preparing for another day of scaring the natives.

Best feature: a variety of micro-areas within the two adjoined ranch-style structures allows for sunny, shady, booth, and bistro style table hopping. 

Old City Java – Knoxville

Old City Java's Direct Trade coffee is widely regarded as the best coffee in Knox. They are located in a nostalgic part of town near the railroad tracks. 

The wow-inducing environment includes reclaimed windows and doors for wall paneling, exposed brick bearing walls, and an inverted bay window façade.

They don’t even have to try.

This is probably the reason their “coming-soon” website is so laughably bad. On the home page, the designer takes name credit for its non-existent proprietary content with a copyright date that has been auto-updating since 2010.

 

Is that an angel in my cup or is Knoxville just glad to see me?

Over several visits, I had the satisfying hummus plate.  When I got stuck in my work on the Great American Novel,  the painted ceiling, inspired by Van Gogh’s “Stary Night, ” kick-started my daydreaming again. 

Old Town Quito Adventure

Mounted swordsman preparing for the weekly Changing of the Guard.

The first thing I notice hiking around hilly Old Town Quito is that everyone has a dog.

Most are big dogs. Most will not be attending obedience school.

The dogs in Old Town bark all day and all night at car alarms, ambulances, and, of course, the barking of other dogs.

The neighborhood of La Ronda was home to poets and other artists during the Modern period.

These dogs are generally working as guardians. They are well fed and attended. The social function of companion animals is just different for Quiteños than what U.S. citizens are used to.

The second thing I notice is lots of police.

There are two or three uniformed officers at every plaza or major intersection.

On the balcony of the apartment where I am staying in La Ronda.

Another surprising fixture downtown: men wandering about selling coca leaf tea.

You cannot find matte de coca tea at the two chain grocery stores in Old Town, but it is entirely legal to purchase and enjoy throughout South America.

It is touted as a cure for altitude sickness. Quito is 2850 meters above sea level. 

To put that into perspective,  Denver, in my home state of Colorado, is 1609 meters above sea level! 

A statue of the Virgin Mary watches over Old Town from El Panecillo.

Things commonly found in abundance in Spanish Colonial capitols are exceptionally well preserved and functional in Quito's Old Town. 

The architectural influence is deep: Stone churches, elaborately carved wooden doors, red tile roofs.

One of Old Town's many churches (San Augustin) which mix local and Spanish elements.

Nearly every available archway or shelter is occupied by a "tienda" or little store. Baked goods, produce, yarns, and durable items are all sold in different tiendas.

There are scads of endearing lunch places, typically run by families. They are affordable, and filled with locals.

I don’t know how the Quiteños decide!

Yours Truly in Plaza Grande for the Changing of the Guard

The big event weekly in Old Town is The Changing of the Guard on Monday mornings at 11 am.

Unlike similar ceremonies in other world capitols, the President of Ecuador is regularly present for the event, waving from the long balcony at the top of the Presidential Palace.

In addition to swordsmen on horseback and pikemen, a marching band plays the national anthem and a choir of schoolboys sings along.

It is a tribute to the people of Ecuador that other nations regard it as stable even though it has had a major domestic war in the last 25 years and an awkward coup attempt as recently as 2010. 

With all the upheaval in Ecuador's history, the regulating contribution of an event like this to the national psyche is estimable!