If You Love Coffee, You Have to Check Out Ethiopia!

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Photo by Daggy J Ali on Unsplash

If you think of Colombia or maybe when you think of the origins of coffee, you aren’t alone. However, both of those guesses are wrong even though they are both modern havens for coffee.

If you want to go back to the true origins of coffee, Ethiopia is the place you have to travel to! Coffee was first discovered and created in the East African country and once you visit, you’ll see how important it is to the culture. 

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The arabica plant is where coffee comes from was first found in the Kaffa region of Ethiopia, and it was the region from which the word coffee came out of. Researchers say that coffee was first cultivated in the region all the way back in the 9th century, and in modern-day Ethiopia, coffee is served in a very special way. 

Similar to  Japanese tea ceremonies, in Ethiopia, there are coffee ceremonies.  The ceremony is very precise and involves things like roasting the beans in a pan before grinding them and brewing the coffee. There is usually incense present and often people will serve special popcorn with the coffee.

Though you normally have to be personally invited to a coffee ceremony, there are some public ones in the capital city of Addis Ababa like at the coffee shop Alem Bunna,  so if you do get to participate in one, don’t pass it up!