Kickin' off our first summer in South Florida

Last Friday we drove down to Miami to see The Lion King. We were both excited to see the show ever since we found out it was playing at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami. I was twelve when the movie came out in theaters. The moment I heard the songs, I was instantly taken back to a time when life just seemed to be a lot simpler. Gosh, I miss those days!! The costumes were breath-taking and the set was imaginative. I still can’t get over the amazing performance. It is a definite must-see!

Later that weekend we made barbequed ribs, chicken, zucchini, and corn. A pitcher of mango-orange sangria kept us cool in the warm Florida sun while we grilled. On Sunday we celebrated our 6th “Nikah-versary!” Although we both celebrate June 25th as our actual wedding anniversary, June 10th is special to us as well. We share our nikah date with my brother and his wife. They just celebrated 11 years! Congratulations Zeenat and Ali!

Wine not celebrate??

We finally made our way down to Homestead (1 ½ hours from Fort Lauderdale) for a tour and wine tasting at Schnebly’s Winery. The wine we sampled was not made with grapes. Instead avocados, lychees, mangos, guavas, and passion fruits were used to create the unique flavors. Our favorites were the avocado and lychee wines. Lucky for us these wines can be found at our local grocery store in Fort Lauderdale!

We headed to Baltimore the following week for Nasir’s, excuse me, Dr. Bhanpuri’s graduation. After six years of hard work and dedication he received his doctorate in biomedical engineering from Johns Hopkins University. We couldn’t be more proud of the first doctor in the family!

Hoor’s parents flew back to Florida with us for the remainder of Memorial Day weekend.This was their first trip to Florida in over ten years and we were excited to show them our new home and all the fun things to do around town. Friday evening we walked around Las Olas Boulevard and had dinner at Wild East Bistro where we enjoyed various Asian tapas and sushi.

No visit to South Florida would be complete without a trip to the Everglades. So, it was without hesitation that we ventured west for an afternoon with alligators. Later that evening, we boarded the Fort Lauderdale water taxi for a beautiful tour of the city. The homes we saw were anything but modest. The yachts docked in front the homes were appropriate accessories and deserved all of the “oohs” and “ahs” they received. We eventually made it to Fort Lauderdale Beach where we walked around for a little bit before we traveled back via waterway to downtown Fort Lauderdale for dinner. The next day we drove north along the ocean where we had lunch at Aruba Beach Café. The restaurant is located right on the beach as the name suggests and features delicious Caribbean cuisine. We enjoyed our lunch with refreshing ocean breezes and sounds of the steel drum.

Next month we welcome back the Kapadia family to South Florida!

Happy Summer Everyone!