sad but true

So I must digress for just a minute or two. I see that Stella mentioned coffee and my travels several entries ago. One thing I really appreciate about Europe in general and Spain in particular is the coffee culture. The first time I visited Spain, several years ago, there was nary a to-go cup to be seen. Coffee while you wait for the train? Stand at the kiosk in the middle of the station and drink your coffee out of a porcelain cup. Coffee while out walking about? Take a seat at a cafe, order up a cafe con leche, and leisurely sip your morning/afternoon/evening cup of coffee. Afterall, coffee is social. Spaniards are social. Sitting and drinking coffee from an actual mug, rather than a reinforced paper cup, is social and cosmopolitan.

So guess what? You got it.

Starbucks.

In Madrid. We passed not one, not two, not three, but four Starbucks. We didn't go inside any - but we did stand in front of the windows, gawking, and sure enough, Spanish Starbucks look just like any ol' Starbucks in the States. Same color scheme. Same furniture. Same coffee mugs and thermoses on the shelves. Same green aprons. Same reinforced paper cups - not one real porcelain cup and saucer to be seen.

What's the world coming to?