We met the Faith Community volunteers, a Faith Community alumni Bonnie and her husband Drew at FirstWatch in Fort Lauderdale, FL for brunch. Of course, Abuela had gotten up and made us our first breakfast of chorizo and onions, fried potatoes and fried eggs, along with fresh papaya (in Spanish - fruta bomba) and coffee. So, by the time we got to FirstWatch we weren't super hungry, but as we were really excited about the menu and the rave reviews from Bonnie, we still had to eat a bit (see our healthy turkey omelet below).
It was a wonderful morning spent with truly wonderful people, and it was fun to help celebrate the beginning of Miryam's birthday.
After FirstWatch, we headed to Starbucks with Bonnie and Drew to hang out longer and catch up further - it was great quality time.
We headed back to Miami, FL mid-afternoon and ran a few errands. We got a few pictures from our wedding printed and picked up a beautiful plant with white flowers for Abuela's birthday.
David's Dad recommended that we try a very nice restaurant - Casa Larios - while we were in Miami, FL. As we wanted to take Abuela out for her birthday, we thought it would be a perfect place to try! The food was very good, especially the shrimp ceviche appetizer, black bean soup, and Abuela's chicken. Or so we thought, at least. Abuela, however, did not seem very impressed with the restaurant. We had a very enjoyable evening with good conversation and much laughter - it was special to be with Abuela to celebrate her birthday.
11.15.2009: Late morning, we attended the bi-lingual Mass at St. Dominic's, which is the church that Abuela goes to. It was a very nice service, although we were challenged by how quickly the Spanish parts were spoken! After Mass, we grabbed some coffee, and headed back to Abuela's house.
David's Dad recommended that we try a very nice restaurant - Casa Larios - while we were in Miami, FL. As we wanted to take Abuela out for her birthday, we thought it would be a perfect place to try! The food was very good, especially the shrimp ceviche appetizer, black bean soup, and Abuela's chicken. Or so we thought, at least. Abuela, however, did not seem very impressed with the restaurant. We had a very enjoyable evening with good conversation and much laughter - it was special to be with Abuela to celebrate her birthday.
11.15.2009: Late morning, we attended the bi-lingual Mass at St. Dominic's, which is the church that Abuela goes to. It was a very nice service, although we were challenged by how quickly the Spanish parts were spoken! After Mass, we grabbed some coffee, and headed back to Abuela's house.
We then went with Abuela to Domino Park, which is on SW 8th Street, or "Calle Ocho." Domino Park is known as a gathering place for Cuban men, and a couple of women, to play dominos. As we walked around and watched we could hear the click of dominos being quickly played. Abuela kept on laughing and saying, "old men." Hey, at 84 I guess you can say whatever you like!
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After the park we stopped at a big store on 8th Street where Abuela gifted us with all of the things she thought we need as a newlywed couple - a Cuban coffee pot, Cuban espresso, little espresso coffee cups, and a slotted rice/frying spoon.
After returning to Abuela's, we learned to cook Arroz con Pollo (rice with chicken) from scratch, and it was possibly some of the best Arroz con Pollo we have ever had (you know what they say about love being the secret ingredient in a Grandma's cooking!). We also had green plantains, salad, and more fresh fruit. As we were enjoying our wonderful meal, Abuela smiled and told us that she cooks better than Casa Larios! Which, of course, is true and why she was not so impressed with the food at the restaurant (next time, we will take her somewhere other than Cuban food - Thai perhaps?)
Her niece Ada and Ada's son Daniel stopped by for a few minutes and it was nice to meet and chat with them. Ada brought us two lovely pieces of art as a gift - which we were not expecting and really liked!
All in all, it was a simple and relaxing day. We are very happy - or "muy contente" as Abuela would say.
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