You can't visit Bruges without having a plate of moules marinière, follow it up with handmade chocolates and sipping a cup of hot chocolate at De Proeverie (Katelijnestraat 6) and trying one (or several) of the many beers at 't Brugs Beertje (Kemelstraat 5).
By 10am, after a short trip on the funicular railway, we were each sipping a cappuccino in the sun outside the Gran Café in the Piazzetta of Capri Town.
Now there are too many cowboys," he said, sipping a beer and fiddling with a joint.
Here's how I imagine that I'd imagine the discussion would have gone: Hey kid, you can't be late, so I have to have this 'meeting' with you, but you and I both know that if it wasn't for your bat I'd be sipping margaritas by my pool in Indiana right now, so just be patient here and go through these motions with me, OK? Oh, and don't worry about that fine, I got it.
I remember catching the vaporetto down Venice's Grand Canal, gazing up at the obviously more affluent tourists sipping prosecco in glasses (not plastic cups) on palazzo terraces (not windowsills), and I think I actually sighed.
They emphasised that their study did not prove early sipping led to binge drinking, but said that parents who allow sipping of alcohol may send mixed messages.
That was fine, because we were the ones living there, participating in the locals' early evening sipping and snacking ritual every single day.
Whether it's Nicole Kidman starring in a cinematic three-minute ad for Chanel, Justin Bieber and Lara Stone stripped down to their Calvin Klein underwear, or George Clooney looking suave sipping a Nespresso, there's no doubting the power of celebrity to catapult awareness of a brand.
You can watch all of this action, nibbling on a snack and sipping champagne, from the front end of the Eurostar VIP Lounge which backs on to the street.
There's masses to do (should you feel the need) as well as space to idle the day away sipping on a fruit punch in the shade of a swaying palm.
