Hola! this is Vivi, the 'chapina' coffee socia (guatemalan, café business partner) sharing a bit about our women owned, Guate inspired, bilingual café -connecting from seed to cup to community. Many have asked us what does a "Guate inspired café" mean?
As someone born and raised in Guatemala, when I think of 'Guate' I think of the kindness of its people, the welcoming hearts and homes that I was surrounded by growing up (the very same I encounter every time I visit), of the warm space where a cup of coffee prepared alongside a delicious 'quick bite' is shared as we sit and catch up with familia, amigos & fans. Yes, there is also the need for 'caffeine-to-go', but in Guate is not only about the amazing coffee, it's the space you savor it in, and who you savor it alongside.
THE COLORS AND BOUNTY OF SEMANA SANTA IN GUATEMALA
To be honest, it doesn't hurt to be sipping cafecito in the 'Land of Eternal Spring', surrounded by lush green vegetation, loud colors and sounds, volcanoes (si, Guate has 33), deep blue sky, and beautiful people in that very small but mighty country neighboring Mexico to the south, where centuries of Mayan roots blend with the multiple layers in our complicated 'modern' history.
I grew up there, going to friend's coffee farms where smelling the intoxicating aroma of coffee being roasted defined my childhood and was as comfortable to me as the smell of wet dirt. My mother wouldn't let us drink coffee before age 18. She claimed we'd stop growing - as an adult I now understand that even though she was a generous woman, her 'café de exportación' - the really good stuff - was sadly hard to get by in the 80's in the very same country that grew and processed such beans.
As an immigrant and a Denverite for almost 20 years, that is the little piece of Guatemala I want to share. Kindness to strangers, simple but delicious, soulful bites, and a space to gather and just be. Surrounded by that sweet aroma of farmer-roasted coffee ready to welcome all. A place where it doesn't matter if your thick accent carries through the room, or a conversation is carried next to you in a dialect you don't understand, and where the 'really good stuff' is accessible to all. Even to future coffee drinkers. A warm, welcoming space where people can gather as we connect the dots from seed to cup.
That longing is what drives me, drives us, to keep on moving forward as we find the physical space that will translate a mini version of Guate to our neighbors, friends and fans ('un pedacito de Guate' - 'a little piece of Guate') where we can bump into each other.