Meet The Interns: Michelle

This is Michelle, She is in her 30's and is from South Africa. She has been serving with Youth With A Mission on and off for the last 10 years and has visited 19 different nations since finishing school. She loves to travel and explore different places, because deep down she enjoys adventure and experiencing different cultures. Oh, and she really does love people and coffee--which is why she loves cafe life!

What was life for you before TMPC:
I was working at my home church helping to serve in a GAP year internship. I also spent a lot of time with my family and nieces and nephew and occasionally served at our church Café. 

​Do you remember when you first became interested in coffee?
I feel like I’ve liked coffee forever, even though I'm pretty sure I didn’t drink it as a kid. But I definitely became more interested in good coffee and how it’s made well about 10 years ago. 

On a normal day how many cups of coffee do you drink?
I drink a coffee first thing in the morning and then between one and 2 more cups in the day. So usually 3 cups a day

What is the coffee culture like in your city/town, and how has that shaped your opinion of coffee?
Coffee in Durban at a café is made in a similar way, except that some of the  names of the drinks are made differently, for example our cappuccino’s never have chocolate powered dusted on them and our latte’s have more milk in them, and only one espresso shot in a large see-through glass. While our Flat whites are always a double shot espresso in small water glass with some steamed milk and a small amount of foam on top. So same, same but different. Café culture is definitely growing too and more people are making the switch from instant coffee to “real coffee”.

What is the first place you check out in a new country or city?
 Whenever I travel to a new place, I try to find out first where a good café is, and then look out for either mountains or a large body of water (ocean or lake) and then take my coffee there. 

What is your guilty pleasure when it comes to coffee drinks or treats? 
Coffee and Chocolate are my guilty pleasure so I enjoy a mocha or a chocolate/espresso thick shake

What is your favourite coffee-accompanying activity? 
Conversations with people.

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Do you typically stick with the “usual” or switch up your order?  
I typically know what I like and so stick with it. Occasionally I will switch it up depending on my mood or the weather.  

What is next for you after the completion of the internship?     
I am sticking around and continuing on in the café…..

Do you have any advice for someone considering doing this internship? 
I have learned a lot about coffee and the coffee industry. It has been so insightful and I honestly love coffee and café life more now than I did before. There is such an amazing community feel about the café and we meet so many people from so many different walks of life. It makes life more interesting. 

If you are interested in learning more about The Meeting Place Café or our internship program, please contact us at [email protected] or click here to find out more!

​What We're Listening To: Head to Heart by United Pursuit
What We're Drinking: Large Latte