My encounter with coffee

After dinner my friends asked me for coffee though one of them forgot his wallet, we went out to have coffee. We were there and we ordered two coffee Mocha ice without cream and a coffee Latte ice. The only girl in the shop, made and served us coffee and moved immediately with the next order. It was closing time with ample customers at 7 PM. In Korea we take dinner at 6.00PM and coffee shop is open till 7.00PM.

The coffee shop is in digital part and we usually grab a coffee and go for a walk around the park. Took a sip of coffee as we started to walk in the part. I was very comfortable with Latte without sugar, but the other two complained about its bitterness. They went back to add some sugar to it. One them asked me if I needed sugar. I denied.(I liked its bitterness ;)

As they moved on for sugar I started thinking about my initial days in Korea. My first time to go to a coffee shop in Korea (with a HR girl who used to be with foreign employees). She asked which coffee I would like to order. In India I never liked coffee and never knew that it has so many flavors. When she asked for my choice, I didn't know what to order. I knew only two coffees in India, one is Coffee and other is cappuccino.

As I never liked Cappuccino,I asked her to order coffee. She asked me which coffee would I like, I never knew answer for that. To avoid embarrassment, politely I asked her which coffee would she like. She told that she is ordering for Ice Americano, I immediately told I also will go with Americano. After we received order, I got chance to see liquid sugar for the first time.I just added as she added it. After that she waited for an hour for me to finish it, but I could not because of its bitterness and strange taste. ( I used to take milk tea with sugar in India, which is very sweet). After an hour of struggle I asked her that if I can throw the rest of the coffee. I was thinking how people are made to spend $5 for something like this.

Now it is around little over a year, I was saying that Latte without sugar is great. During this time I tasted many flavors of Latte, Mocha, Americano, Cappuccino and Esspresso from almost every branded shop like Starbucks, Coffee & Beans, Coffee Cofea, Toms & Toms and Dunkin Donuts. Also tried some traditional coffee makers in Suwon.

The lesson was one is a great teacher and you learn lots of things unknowingly. Culture of people around will have definite impact on ones habits. The more important thing is not to be addicted to anything and keep a watch on oneself. Make sure that they are not hurting your basic faith and principle.

I am not a big fan of either coffee or tea, but take them with friends, as I feel that is one among the Halal drinks I can enjoy with my friends in Korea. In drinks I like anything which is more liquid and close to water. Therefore, I choose Americano or Espresso without sugar or any tea without sugar and milk.

If I m asked to vote between coffee and tea (without milk and sugar) I vote for TEA.

Do read my next post on green tea , my experience with Tea in Korea.

Ramdan 2009 plans and targets

Ramdan is coming and inshallah I want to make best use of it inshallah. Want to make it a wonderful learning experience and a tension free, holistic progress, Inshallah. I made targets and a rough sketch to achieve them. I may intensify few activities time to time based on mod and inclination.

The most important thing was to set realistic and achievable targets, and also need to maintain the balance between work and religiousness. As I m at the verge of finishing a project and will get some time during first week of Ramadan to wait for test results, inshallah these days I will try to achieve most of my targets.

Because of busy office schedule, I need a systematic effort to make best use of my time resources friends and relatives to revive the religious sprit. As we usually we at the last few days of Ramadan for not making best use of it, lets plan every hour of it and may Allah help us.

I pray Allah SWT to accept my efforts and bless me with strength and guidance to achieve them. Accept and every small effort and grant multiples in ajar and save me from Ria and Shaitan’s Makar. Ameen.

Targets:

1. Month of Quraan, will complete it once atleast.
2. Memorize last Juz for 10 surahs
3. Rememorize the parts of Quraan that I memorized long back
4. All 5 paryers on time with all Sunnah and Nawafil
5. Try to pray maximum traveeh at Seoul central mosque (make a plan with friends)
6. Inshallah will not miss a Tahajud.
7. Read about companions of Prophet SWT, His life (read to all people two years back) in masjid after fajr. And also read Ahadith. Learn about Islam more.
8. Email distribution of prophet sayings under the name called A Hadith A Day (AHAD) at least till I go home (India).
9. Weekly evaluation of targets achieved, will share with some relatives and friend.
10. Will try to motivate youngers and friends and also get inspiration from them. Want to make it a month of competition for good deeds, Inshallah.
11. Charity will be among main targets to achieve more ajar inshallah, will find best ways to spend in way of Allah.
12. Search for Lialatul Qadr will be of atmost importance inshallah.
13. No music (Though I rarely listen to it), No movies ( I never watched a complete movie in years) and no to any stuff that leads to unlawful intension or anger of Allah SWT.
14. Try my best to follow all taraveeh from Haram inshallah.
15. Try to be best Muslim, give time to mom everyday (wont take much time, I know she is busy), to brothers and sisters to motivate them from Ramadan and it activities.
16. Invite friend for Iftaars at home some times.
17. Ask loootttsss off Duaa. (May be every free time), Beg, beg and keep begging to Allah SWT.

Plan:

2.30 AM: wake up
3:00 AM: Pray Tahajud
3.15 AM: Eat Eat and Eat a lot of Sahar
4.00 AM: Listen some quraan from www.haramainrecordings.com/
4.30 AM: Fajr & Quraan
5:00 AM: Enjoy second round of sleep
7:00 AM: get ready and go to office
12:00: Noon: When everyone goes for lunch pray Zohr and take nap.
5:00 PM : Go back home
5.30 PM: pray Asar read a some book or memorize Quraan or take a nap
6.30 PM: Make Iftar, dinner and next day Sahar.
7.30 PM: Iftaar and Maghrib
8.00 PM: talk to mom and read Quraan, memories, Read some book or talk to a friend.
9.30 PM: get ready for Isha and Traveeh. Inshallah we will do this collectively.
11.00 PM: Gooooo toooo beeedddd

Weekend Plan:
This you need to guess ;)

We can just plan and try our best to execute it, and Allah plans better than us. Let me pray to Allah SWT for making things really easy and make them useful on Day of Judgment. Accept every smallest good deed we do and bless us with Aajr here and hereafter, Ameen.