Frappés and Felines: I visited a Cat Café!
Wednesday, February 22, 2017
A few weeks ago I went to Auckland (New Zealand) for a concert (Panic at the Disco - it was amazing) and whilst I was up there I booked in to visit the BaristaCats Café, because a cat café is one of the best ideas anyone has ever had!
This experience was a rollercoaster of emotions; there were so many beautiful cats and I wanted to play and cuddle every single one of them. Sure, we booked for an hour to be there, and an hour is a long time, but how on earth am I meant to spread hour a whole sixty minutes to fourteen cats?! But, I took one for the team and pushed my way through such a tough and exhausting experience!
Part of me is writing this blog post so I have an excuse/place to upload these cat photos, and another part of me simply wants to share how much of a magical experience visiting a cat café was! Seeing as cat cafés are still a new 'thing', I felt it was necessary to share my time there with you all.
Zuul
Once you have disinfected yourself and come through the safety double-doors (so there's no cat escapees) you are inside the café and are immediately greeted by a handful of cats. You are able to place an order for a drink and some snacks (human food only though) then you walk through the small corridor with a bunch of shelves on the wall, and, if you're lucky a kind little kitty will escort you in to the main section of the café.
Bansky
I have to say, I didn't really expect there to be as many cats as there were, when I walked in. I was sort-of expecting just under ten, so I was very excited! There were a lot of kitties having a little snooze, either by the windows or on the couches. Then many more playing with all the toys and people who had come into the café before us. It was very overwhelming and exciting all at once and I wouldn't wait to go in!
Woody
Bandit
Zuul
In the corner beside the door there is a giant (what I like to call) cat tree, where the four kitties that were snoozing on stayed there pretty much the entire time that we were there. But they were up for a lot of chin and ear scratches, which I was obliged to give when I saw their cute little sleepy faces. How adorable are cats when they stretch out their legs and open up their claws when they're half asleep?!
Orson
Golden Homie
There were a couple of cats there that didn't seem very cuddly, but I still tried my darndest to get some snuggs in when they were a little off-guard. Orson managed to get out of my reach up in another cat tree, but was perfectly okay with taking selfies with my friend Bianca, but not me. I was only wanting some snuggles, Orson! Golden Homie was quite timid and would spend most of his time inside the play tube.
Bryan
Bryan
BaristaCats takes in a lot of rescue cats, some with diasbilities such as being deaf or blind. This gorgeous one was born without a tail and has been blind since he was a little kitten. I developed quite a soft-spot for him and would just follow him around; despite his blindness, he knows exactly where every waterbowl, couch and table in the café is!
Hamburglar
Jean Genie, Bryan, Bandit, Golden Homie and Hamburglar
I also developed a soft spot for Hamburglar, who was a very cheeky boy. When you ordered drinks from the café part of the café they all came with lids. Whilst we were there, someone ordered some tea and were given it as shown above, with the cups and milk jug having little silicone doily lids. This was to prevent the cats from stealing or spilling the contents. But alas this did not stop Hamburglar, who knew exactly how to lift off said lids and spill the contents, more specifically the milk jug. It took probably 0.5 seconds for a handful of the nearby cats to notice and rush over to assist in cleaning up the mess.
Bansky
Jean Genie
It's safe to say that I loved every moment of this cat café experience; and would recommend it to anyone who haves a soft spot for the feline family. I do have to say, don't wear black like myself and my friend, Bianca did, as you come out covered in fur and will remain that way for the rest of the day!
Have you been to a cat café before and did you love it as much as I did?! Alternatively, tell me some cheeky cat stories in the comments below, have you got a Hamburglar of your own?!
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Please check out the partners that help support BaristaCats Café and donate when/if you can, these companies help pay for a lot of the care for the cats at this café and many, many other cats.
Until next time
- Louise x
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