Coffee In The Milking Parlour
or how to have an enjoyable day at work
Having lived in Croatia for almost my entire life, I got to grow up with a lot of Croatian traditions and customs. One of them is our “coffee culture”. This tradition is so deeply embedded in Croatian society that it infiltrates almost every aspect of daily life.
All you need is coffee
A proper day starts with some home-brewed Turkish coffee, typical for all the Balkan countries. This is a strong coffee variety prepared in a special pot called “džezva”. It is prepared like this: you stir ground coffee into hot water in the džezva. After boiling, it is poured into a cup along with the coffee grounds.
Throughout the day, be it morning, noon or evening, people meet up in cafés to drink and chat for hours. Cafés are at every corner in Croatia. Even if it is not coffee that you drink, you meet with people “for coffee”, you invite someone to your home for coffee, and if you don‘t have time to hang out with your friends for coffee, something is seriously wrong with you!
It’s the ultimate measure of time in Croatia and the word is just all-present in the Croatian language and mind. But the extent of this laid-back, coffee-centred lifestyle, I only grasped after working on a farm in Croatia for the first time.
Morning greetings
I was helping out with the milking for a couple of days at a friends’ cow farm. Together with my dear friend Nada, we went milking the cows at 6 am and 6 pm every day. Nada and I were sharing a guest-room during that time.
Since it was winter, it was pitch dark outside when we would get up in the morning. I had my alarm set for 5:45 on the first morning. But suddenly, just shortly before my alarm was due to ring, I woke up to a voice calling my name.
Confused and terrified, I tried to open my eyes, which did not prove to be easy, tired as I was. “Who is calling me at such an hour of the night?!”, I thought to myself, catching a glimpse of Nada at the end of my bed. In a blur, I heard her asking me if I wanted some coffee, holding her own cup in her hands already. I managed to reply something like a yes, and Nada headed downstairs to the kitchen. It took me some more seconds to regain consciousness of time and space. Then I got up, quickly put on my clothes and headed to the kitchen, too.
There, Nada was already waiting for me with a cup of freshly brewed Turkish coffee and a friendly smile on her face. We sat down, cherishing our coffee and the moment of serenity before our hard work would start. Nada prayed for the day and then we left for the milking parlour. The day could begin!
How to have an enjoyable day at work
It was on another occasion that I was working on a dairy farm in September of 2018. The farm was a relatively big one for Croatian standards, having around 60 cows.
Situated next to it was a small family-owned cheese production and a farm shop. I was primarily working in the cheese factory, along with two to three other employees.
The working day started at 6 am in a very enjoyable manner: one of my co-workers would prepare a big pot of coffee for everyone. She would put the pot on a table of the terrace, along with a bunch of cups for everyone coming along.
And coincidentally, just about everyone working on the farm, including the boss, showed up just in time for coffee. We chatted for a while, then everybody complained at the sight of the work to be done. So after everyone had finished their cigarette or two, we took up our work again (not that I smoke, personally).
Breaks are a necessity
At around 9 am, it was time for a second coffee and smoking pause. The veterinarian, who had come to check on a sick calf, was just about to get back to his car and leave, when we invited him to join us for coffee, too. We chatted on for a while, then got back to work.
Then, at around 11:30, it was finally time for lunch. The farm owner’s wife had prepared a good meal for all the workers. Following lunch, everyone gathered on the terrace again for an afternoon break along with coffee and cigarettes. After some time of relaxed chatting and checking up our cell-phones, each one headed to their working place with a sigh, already looking forward to the 1 pm pause, when the next shift of workers would arrive.
A quarter to 1 pm, one of my co-workers headed to the kitchen next-doors to prepare coffee for the following shift. We gathered for a brief hello. A cigarette and coffee later, we continued working until 2 pm, when the morning shift finally ended.
Should I have been surprised to see my co-workers sitting around the table for a last cigarette and coffee after work before heading home? Another “8 hours” of work were done for the day… 😉
Coffee in the milking parlour
Milking was done twice a day by a village woman called Marija. I helped her out with milking one day. Arrival at work was shortly before 5:30 am. After walking to the farm through the silent village, Marija greeted me with a sleepy nod. She was already sitting on the terrace with her morning coffee and pointed to the cup she’d prepared for me. I thanked her with a smile, poured some milk in my cup and took a sip of it. Still, I was asking myself when we would start the milking, having just three minute left until milking should start. And coffee-drinking usually is anything but a quick affair in Croatia…
But Marija already got up from her chair, her cup in her hands, and headed to the milking parlour. As I quickly got into my overall, I concluded with amusement that we were going to drink our coffee in the milking parlour!
Where cows are called by name
And so, we did, as Ema, Tina, Milka and Luna were already entering the parlour. We installed our cups in a safe place, taking a sip from them every now and then. Marija started the milking with experienced, swift moves. She then released the first group of cows from the parlour and let Dora, Ina, Maja and Sandra enter, calling each cow by her own name.
“Next time you come and visit us, you’ll be sure to find a cow named after you”, Marija told me. “The owner’s wife is very fond of your name…”, she laughed. Amused, I promised myself to come and visit again one day.
I’m already looking forward to meeting Naomi and enjoying another cup of coffee in the milking parlour!
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