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The lounge is currently ranked as the best independent coffee house by Seattle Weekly, and the unkowing setting of this blog entry.

Two boys just walked in wearing school back packs. They can’t be any older than seventeen each. Since school is out and its summer time they must be headed to some sort of camp for teens. They buy muffins and take their place at a table to wait for their coffees.

The wait for the coffee was somewhat perplexing when I first arrived but as noted on a big blackboard on entry to this place it loves brewing coffee and they take pride in it. Hence the wait for the coffee. My latte took three minutes to make and had a very particular whirl on it when presented. I felt that maybe I should have ooooohed on receipt but didn’t and I just walked away shyly.

The boys are gone.

45th avenue at 7:45 in the morning is moderately busy. Again its summertime, the normal Washington university crowd is missing, leaving me to wonder what and where all of these people could be doing or going. That though is a frequent thought I have when staring at passing traffic or walking masses in a city, village or neighborhood.

The walls here are painted a nice deep blue, its close to Miro blue but darker. The baseboards are touching on purple and completely surround the cafe. I’m sitting at a black formica table with four chairs that resemble those one might find in a diner. My table is no different than the ten or twelve other tables that dot the cafe. Facing the avenue are snuggly bolted to large, floor to ceiling windows, bar type installations with another fifteen stools. And finally towards the back are two velvet orange couches with walls painted to match. The couches sit sadly unused waiting to cushion the next lazy customer.

Seattle is now famous for its cafes and cafe culture since Starbucks has taken the planet by storm by serving consistently brewed speciality coffee in a relaxed atmosphere. The cafes are a must visit on any stop to the Emerald city. That’s one of the reasons I’m here. I couldn’t visit Seattle without partaking in the cafe scene. I sit here, with my laptop and latte in hand.

Two men, possibly a couple, agreed with my morning choice of cafe. I don’t think they are visiting like me becauce they share an immediate energy with the baristas. Each order their coffee and turn to take in the scenery of the place and listen to the jazz tunes ambient music. One buys the paper and reads the front page as the other checks the headlines over his shoulder.

Today’s headlines wonder “Who killed two hikers near Mt. Pilchuck?” The Seattle Times articles begins with the horrible news that a mother and daughter from Seattle were last seen alive at about 10 a.m. on a day hike to Pinnacle Lake.

The two men leave holding their hot coffees.

A girl in a peach shirt, jeans and wearing a backpack is now chating with one of the servers. It sounds like a long story that the barista enjoys. Pleasant smiles are exchanged followed with short anecdotes no doubt relating to the first story. The soft bang of the coffee machine being cleaned signals the readiness of her coffee. Thank yous and goodbye.

A dude, wearing a black robe from head to toe and a matching headdress is now sitting on one of the orange couches. He’s reading a book.  He must be a fan of the movie Darkman.  He doesn’t look friendly or open to conversation. I can’t see the title. I try but fear he may see me staring and send down the rath of heaven.

Lukey Luke just entered. His name I gather as announced by the server. Luke pulls out his Ipod ear phones and does a little good moring, I want my coffee dance and receives a quick little jiggle from the server. They definitely know each other.

A group of four executives follow Luke into the bar area. Execs are unmistakeable anywhere with their clean shaves, tucked in shirts, shined shoes and ready for work looks. They order quick coffees and impatiently rock on the balls of their feet as the coffee is prepared to go.

Another guy, kind of sleepy looking is right behind them. He needs coffee more than anyone else I’ve seen. If he didn’t have one of the green chairs to lean on he might’ve already fallen over a couple of times. He scratches his eyes, stares at the shiney silver coffee machine and waits patiently between long, long blinks.

An Asian wearing a black track jacket with white pinstripes is watching the sleepy guy as intently as I am. He appears ready to offer his strong support of the sleepy one were to fall over.

A roundish, smallish, lumpish lady wearing a small parachute with chinese prints joins the Asian dude in the waiting area. She rocks from foot to foot and back again, staring at the ceiling or pretending to read one of the fair trade coffee signs.

On a window bar just behind me there are two Imacs and a flower pot. The flower pot asks visitors to vote for the cafe at www.seattleweekly.com/bestofseattle. I just did. It’s worth my vote for a few reasons. They serve a good coffee. The music is nice and not overbearing. I like their independent vibe (both servers are pierced and tattooed everywhere - a clear sign of indepedence). And the color scheme works well with the large windows and high ceilings. Oh yeah! The free wi-fi.

The Trabant Chai Lounge has its own website if you’d like to keep track of future happenings. http://www.trabantchailounge.com/.

Many thanks to the lounge for letting me sit here and spend a pleasant hour watching and observing a few of the characters of this interesting city.

Thanks for reading Ptv.