Showing posts with label memories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memories. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Florida Keys

I went to the Florida Keys on my honeymoon a few months ago. We stayed in Marathon for the most part, but did end up going to Key West for the day as well as a day in Islamorada and Key Largo. Here are a *few* photos of Marathon.

 
This is Sombrero Beach. They Keys don't have many beaches and they have a LOT of jellyfish. But they were still very beautiful.






 I had yummy fish tacos. My husband had burgers the whole trip. He has a very limited palate and admits to this. I concur wholeheartedly. I think it's time I start cooking foods from around the world and making him eat it. All of it. For someone who loves to eat, I was surprised homeboy doesn't eally enjoy other food as much as Indian food.




Sunset on Sombrero beach.








W went snorkelling. Here I am in my Burqini! As my husband put it, I was the center of attraction. I borrowed my sister in laws but am totally going to buy one. It's worth it and although I got weird looks from being fully covered and going into the water {or being fully covered in general},  I was glad I could experience snorkelling, jet skiing and the other water sports.

You guys, I don't know how to swim, but I went. I thought I knew how to swim but it's been so long I think I developed a fear of the water. I can float, but not actively swim. I discovered this fact in the pool the night we arrived at the hotel. Swimming is a life skill everyone MUST learn. I am going to take adult classes as soon as I'm done with my exams.

We called Captain Hooks snorkelling and they told us weak swimmers are fine and they'll take care of us. So we went. I had a life jacket, a noodle and a rope so I don't float away from the boat. I am so glad I went. It was the best experience in my life. I never thought I'd feel the way I did when I first put my head in the water. Praise be to God. He made everything so beautiful and so perfect. I am still stupefied by it all.



This is a parrot fish. It's ugly but underwater is BEAUTIFUL. Someone caught it while we went fishing but we couldn't keep it. I wouldn't want to eat it anyways. We saw these while snorkelling and it was my favorite fish. PS - I caught the most fish on the trip. ;)
Here are our yellowtails. Most restaurants wll cook your catch for you. Me and the Mister took only enough fish for dinner that night and gave the rest to the other fisherman. My husband had a fried fish sandwich. Yum, of course. I had mine grilled and served with a side of baked beans. Which were delicious!!! And I later found out most recipes for baked beans call for bacon bits. Sigh. I'm going to have to make them myself in the future.





You can't go to the Keys and NOT have Key Lime pie. Dinner and Dessert at Barracuda Grill.



And  a few from Key West..

Shrimp Po' Boy, mmmm...

Sunset Festival. Every night at Sunset there are vendors and entertainers and food. 



  I liked Marathon for our honeymoon. It was private and laid back. I'm glad we didn't stay Key west. Key West was a lot of fun. We rented a moped for the day and there were a lot of things to do. But it was very very crowded and busy. Anyways, I'm fasting and studying so I guess I'm thinking about food and going on a vacation, which made me flip through these yummy memories. We'll definitely be going again, inshaAllah.  

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Making Memories

Cooking can be a fun task if done right. I don't like to cook...until I convince myself otherwise.

My mother-in-law LOVES to cook. She literally thinks of what to make, who to feed and when to do it when preparing meals. Some days there will be four dishes, other days add-ons for "if we need an extra dish."

My mother was not like this. My mother is a laid-back person who doesn't cook if she doesn't need to. That means if her kids rather eat something other than rice with curry, she won't complain (unless its a few days in a row). She is also willing and able to eat "American" dishes such as pizza, pastas, baked foods unlike the oily salty spicy Bangladeshi dishes. My mother-in-law cannot eat outside foods. She barely eats anything anyone else makes.

When I was a teenager my mother would not make us cook meals. I could if I wanted to, yet she'd be around to yell if you did the slightest thing wrong. I wasn't responsible for feeding mouths. Usually cooking meant the meats were cut, the onions were chopped and all I had to do was toss food in a pot and stir on the stove.

Now it's different.

I have to cut meats, fishes, vegetables, prepare meals and cook. It's a part of my chores and duties as a wife.

As a teenager my mother prioritized our education, therefore she didn't force us to cook. I can only count a few dishes I knew how to make (enough to survive) before I was married at 20. I'd tell my mom, "I'll hire a chef, who needs to cook?" She would get upset.

I have no chef indeed but I do have a master chef, my mother-in-law, who chooses our meals, and a head chef, my sister-in-law, who cooks most of the food to make sure it comes out perfect. What do I do? I'm the helper. I cut, clean, stir, cook, and do whatever is needed on the side. In the end, we all help each other.

This reminds me of a hadith, a saying of the Prophet Muhammad, about helping people:

“He who removes a burden from a believer in this world will have his burden removed by Allah on the Day of Judgement.Whosoever eases the hardship of another, will be given ease by Allah in this world and in the Everlasting Life.... Allah continues to help a worshiper As long as he continues helping his brother...(Muslim)."

Religion can be a motivation to do good things you don't like, to earn rewards.

My sister-in-law said if a person starts a chore saying, "Bismillah" or "In the Name of God" and ends the task saying, "Alhamdulillah" or "Thanks be to God," the time spent is counted as a good deed.

Every time I think of how much I don't like to cook, I think of the blessings in disguise: my family is happy, I get to eat healthy and I spend my time wisely. Count your blessings.