Probably one of my favorite addictions is to spend cash.  Which is why it’s so difficult to refrain from buying everything I want.  I’m sure most Americans have this issue, but it’s not something to be proud of.  Bruce, has the same weakness.  Yen Jie decided to take Bruce and I shopping.  Since it was the day of the new year we decided that it was appropriate.

I happened to need a coat.  And thankfully My mother gave me a nice red envelope.  So, I hit the stores looking for a good coat.  You’d think that it would be cheaper since it is China, but it was about the same.  We hit G-Star and a few other big brand stores.  Everything was $2000+ RMB which is about $300 USD.  I told Yen Jie I couldn’t afford anything since I was on a budget.  I don’t think he understood me.

We arrived at another shopping mall with the most expensive brands (Gucci, Prada, Coach, etc.).  Thinking I wasn’t going to get anywhere Bruce and I sat down for a coffee.     What we found was quite possibly some of the best Artisan coffee in BJ.  In comparison my favorite coffee place “Cafe Flat White” a New Zealand opened coffee shop in Beijing, this place is, dare I say it, is even better.  Pricey is a light way of putting the price of this coffee ($60-88RMB, about $10-12 USD).  But, why not indulge, after all it is Chinese new year, and I am in Beijing.

Looking down the menu I was immediately excited with the different single origins they carried.  I saw the Japanese style of brewing coffee (2 cups per serving), something I’ve always seen but never tried at Blue Bottle Coffee.  But, looking further down the menu I saw something even more catchy “Belgian Style coffee” (3 cups per serving).  I had to get it.  I wanted to know what was different.

Tip for traveling foodies: Try Belgian Coffee!  It might take longer to brew, but it’s worth the wait.  I know my pseudo character Omar would approve.  This brewing method entails coffee beans soaked and sucked back into the pot, by shear physics.  My description doesn’t do it justice so I’ve made a little movie for people to watch.

Excellent show and it surely brought out an amazing flavor in the coffee.  I usually go with espresso, but in this case I’m really glad I tried something new.

Walking upstairs.  Bruce and I found some clothes at Le Coq Sportif and were pretty ecstatic to add to our popping colors in this trip.