Some people asked me why I am writing about Starbucks. I understand that some people disregard Starbucks as high-end coffee.
I will be honest with you; I like Starbucks.
I have a personal reason, and this is a short story about Starbucks and me.
If you are not interested in reading my story, please skip to the bottom to go straight into articles about Starbucks Japan.
Starbucks and Me – 30 years ago
As some of you know, I came to the USA when I was a kid. One of my first experiences in the USA was a visit to Seattle, and my host family hosted me. (The host family is still “my family,” and we are in close contact.)
It was back in early 1990, Starbucks did not have a store in Japan. So my host family took me to Starbucks in Seattle. It was the first time I had a latte, and I still remember I was very inspired by it. I was so excited about the “new” drink I “discovered,” and I ended up bringing home an espresso machine from that trip. No one around me had drunk any espresso drink, never seen an espresso machine.
Something went wrong with the machine, though (the voltage difference, I think – still a mystery to this day); on the first try after a long trip from the USA to Japan, I put water in the Espresso machine and turned the power on. After few minutes, a vast explosion brews up the machine and spilled all the milk, coffee, and everything around. Luckily no one was hurt.
The espresso machine didn’t work as I imagined, but that was my first experience with Starbucks and the USA.
To this day, I do enjoy stopping at Starbucks, maybe reminding me of the sweet and bitter youth days of visiting the USA and Starbucks.
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