Smitten by Cycles: The Ginsbergs and Tandem Coffee Roasters

Once we arrived in Portland, we pretended like we had normal lives for about five days. Caroline and her awesome roommate Kelsey had an empty room for us to nest in. We got to spend time with another old friend, Jocylin, who had just moved to town. Jocylin took us to a great cooperative cafe and then guided us to the local farmers market. We bought north eastern apples, local milk, and salsa fixings. The market was bustling with people and fresh local goodies.

We read books, and made many dinners with new and old friends. Julie and Kevin, who live just down the street from Caroline met us our first night there for dinner. And after that, it seemed that we saw them everyday. It was fun to feel a part of a community, even for just a short while.

Much like its west coast counterpart, Portland is known for its food. Arabica Coffee and the Speckled Ax served up great espresso. We became obsessed with the local Standard Baking Company and its fresh breads and sticky buns.

After staying longer than intended, we rambled up the coast to Caroline's parents house. With its incredible scenery and adorable seacoast towns, we quickly learned to love cycling the backroads of Maine. L.L. Bean land was a hoot. After passing through the little town of Wiscasset, we found a camp spot just off Highway 1 in the woods. It was a beautiful spot; and for the first time, Brant and I relished in feeling cold. We put on our down jackets and wool long johns and slept so well.

We arrived at Judy and Allen Ginsberg's house in the evening of Friday September 7th. As soon as we arrived, we knew we were going to love them. It was one of those moments when you think, the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree, or wow, I think my friend's parents are cooler than my friend. And Caroline is about as awesome and motivated as they come.

Allen and Judy live in a beautiful little farmhouse they purchased thirty years ago. The walls breath the memories of many stories. The house feels lived in with weathered wood floors and old photos on the walls. Allen built the barn in the back to house his business, The Fiddler's Green Farm: he mills organic flour and makes whole grain warm cereals, pancake mixes, cookie mixes and many other delicious things. He and Judy helped start the first food co-op in Maine, which is now the largest. Since Reid left, I haven't seen anyone make Brant laugh more than Allen did. He has a subtle, perfect sense of humor and the best laugh. I loved watching Brant bust up in a huge smile and a full loud laugh when Allen made his on-point comments.

Judy is one of the best listeners I have met, and it goes to show that she must be a fantastic high school guidance counselor (one of my dream jobs, by the way). She also is an avid cyclist that has ridden across Maine many times, and while we were there she road in a half century charity ride.

All to say, we were in good good company. But Judy and Allen's most outstanding quality is definitely their kindness. They are utterly and totally kind. Brant and I couldn't stop talking about it. And after meeting Don and Barbara only a week earlier, we began to feel that there were some major life lessons to be learned from these people. What kind of life do we want to lead?

We spent two days with Judy and Allen. In that time, Brant finally had lobster--something he had been dreaming of since Kansas. Like good Mainers, Judy and Allen know how to cook lobster. The feast was wonderful.

Belfast is an adorable seacoast town. Brant and I walked down to the harbor and admired some stunning wooden sailboats. We played cribbage at a local happy hour and ate at the local co-op.

While we were at the Ginsberg's house, we received a Facebook message from Tandem Coffee Roasters in Portland, asking us to pay them a visit if we were still in Portland. With that, we decided to make Portland on our way. So we turned our gaze back on Boston and our upcoming flight to Thailand. We had a few stops to make along the way (Peter White's being one of them).

We bid Judy and Allen farewell, explaining to them how we thought they were heroes.

100 miles later, we made it to Tandem, just as they were about to close.

Tandem Coffee Roasters is an absolute dream. The space is simple and beautiful, an art deco brick building full of good natural light. It sits in the industrial area of East Portland, an up and coming part of town. They share an address with Bunker Brewing Company, so if you are ever in this part of the world, it is beyond a worthwhile stop.

Kathleen and Will welcomed us in with fresh shots of espresso and cookies. As fellow bike tourists who rode cross country a few years back, they were full of questions about our trip. We talked about the details of our adventures and we inquired them about their touring experiences and how they arrived at Tandem. They had just opened their doors only two weeks earlier. However, it was quite apparent that these two (and their dear friend and coworker Vien) know exactly what they are doing.

Kathleen used to work for Blue Bottle in the Bay Area for a few years before the owner of Blue Bottle asked her to take his company to the East Coast. So Kathleen started and ran Blue Bottle out of Brooklyn, NY for a few years before leaving to start her own company with her husband, Will, a craftsman carpenter and old roaster for Blue Bottle. They are focusing on wholesale at the moment, but do a have a small cafe dedicated to pouring beautiful cups of coffee and espresso and to providing a welcoming space for the community.

Brant and I soaked up our good fortune. I couldn't believe that they had sought us out. Kathleen reassured me that taking care of bicycle tourists was in their wedding vows, so I had to accept the kindness based on principle. They could not have found more happy tourists.

We got to spend more time with Caroline and Jocylin before heading out the next morning. We rode back to Tandem and said goodbye and thank you to our new friends over coffee. It was lovely.

With no destination ahead of us, we retraced our ride through New Hampshire back down to Boston to get ready to leave for Thailand.

We made a quick pitstop at Cobbett's pond at Wally and his family's cabin. We were prividged to meet the whole Walworth clan while we were there. Everyone left after one night, and Brant and I had the place to ourselves. We pretended to be at summer camp, swimming, playing cards on the party barge, lounging in the sun. It was pure summer camp magic.