Every Cup of Coffee is an Art Piece
Mars Loi, a third-year student from the Department of Communication, is the president of the Cocktail and Coffee Learning Society of the UM Students’ Union (CCLSUMSU). During his free time, Loi works part-time as a coffee barista. He says that he fell in love with coffee because of latte art. ‘I treat every cup of coffee as an art piece,’ says Loi. ‘The global coffee market is developing rapidly. The price for a cup of coffee in Macao has gone up a lot as well, from a few bucks in the past to hundreds of Patacas now. However, Macao’s coffee market is still in its infancy compared to the rest of the world.’ Because of this, Mars is determined to continue to promote coffee culture. He plans to launch more collaborative projects with residential colleges and other student societies at UM.
Love at First Taste
Zhao Zhihe, a first-year student from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is a big fan of coffee. She fell in love with coffee the first time she tried it. ‘Now I drink coffee every day,’ says Zhao. ‘Coffee has become my favourite study companion. I can study more effectively after having a cup of it.’ As her interest in coffee grew, Zhao joined the CCLSUMSU earlier this year to learn more about it. ‘I don’t know much about coffee aside from being able to choose the ones I like. I hope I will learn about the professional aspects of coffee.’
We called all UM faculty offices to find out which faculty member is the biggest fan of coffee. The office of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities immediately recommended Man Chiu, an assistant professor from the Department of English. He drinks an average of three to four cups per day. ‘I usually drink a little more if I have more lectures to give during that day,’ says Chiu, who is very picky with his coffee. ‘Among all kinds of coffee, I only drink expresso, with milk and no sugar. I have a coffee machine both at home and in my office, so I can always make my own coffee.’ Chiu suggests that the university should set up more coffee vending machines on the campus for the convenience of coffee lovers.
Terry Lam, a staff member from the Campus Services Section, is responsible for UM’s food and beverage services. He himself also knows a lot about coffee. According to Lam, many UM members are coffee fans but most of them usually only buy from one cafe on campus. ‘We will consider the possibility of opening more cafes in the shopping mall on campus to offer more choices,’ says Lam.
