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Morning coffee near the Dome of the Rock. Coffee here is syrupy, thick, very sweet, served in small glass tumblers or plastic cups. It is to be drunk very slowly, not tossed back like the Italians do with their espresso. You cannot go into a shop, a bookstore, clothes store, curio shop, without being offered a glass of coffee or tea. One day when it was raining quite hard, I found myself taking shelter in many doorways and shops. Everywhere I went I was offered coffee, and with it, conversation. I made my way to Abed Barakat's shop in the Old City, where we spent the afternoon. Abed fired up the small electric heater and went twice into the street to order coffee. He was reading a great many books, some in English. There was Noam Chomsky and the biography of Henry Kissinger. If you enjoy good conversation and strong (curl your toes) coffee, then wander in through the Damascus Gate with no particular urgency. Leave your watch or day planner behind. You'll be sure to consume a great deal of caffeine and widen your perspective of the world at the same time. Abed can be found at 143 Dabbegheh Street in the Old City. He is renowned for his knowledge of Bedouin folklore, art, weavings, and ancient copper and brass. He will have a long and fascinating story to tell.

 

How to make good Turkish (Arab) coffee
Pour in cold water in the coffee pot. You should use one cup of cold water for each cup you are making and then add an extra half cup "for the pot". Add a teaspoonful of the ground Turkish coffee per cup in the water while the water is cold and stir. The amount of coffee may be varied to taste, but do not forget, there will be a thick layer of coffee grounds left at the bottom of your cup for properly made Turkish coffee. Don't fill the pot too much. If you need to add sugar this is the time to do it.

Heat the pot as slowly as you can. The slower the heat the better it is. Make sure you watch it to prevent overflowing when the coffee boils.

When the water boils pour some (not all) of the coffee equally between the cups, filling each cup about a quarter to a third of the way. This will make sure that everybody gets a fair share of the foam forming on top of the pot, without which coffee loses much of its taste. Continue heating until coffee boils again (which will be very short now that it has already boiled). Then distribute the rest of the coffee between the cups.

Since there is no filtering of coffee at any time during this process, you should wait for a few minutes before drinking your delicious Turkish coffee while the coffee grounds settle at the bottom of the cup.