Chicago Trip + College Life

Hello everyone! You may or may not have noticed that I was on a short hiatus for the past week. Last week, my entire family took a trip to Chicago for my cousin's wedding! I have so much to tell and so many complaints about all the mishaps that occurred with our flight, but in this post, I'll be giving a short run through about the trip and the upcoming school year! 

C H I C A G O  T R I P:

8.13.14 Wednesday: Our flight was supposed to depart around 7pm Wednesday, but after 5 delays we finally reached Chi at 1:41am. Crazy right? Yeah, my next blog post will blow your mind.

My henna!

8.14.14 Thursday: By now, all the guests have been trickling in and settled in the hotel my aunt had booked for all of us. In the morning around 11am, we took a trip to the bride's house to eat brunch and deliver presents for her! At night, we had a small dinner at our hotel where the bride's family came and everyone showcased their personal gifts to give to the bride and groom. Prior to this dinner, the girls from the groom's family got our henna done! 

My sister-in-law and I at the brunch at the bride's house!

8.15.14 Friday: In the morning, both parties showed up at a local masjid where the nikkah (marriage by Islam) took place. This meant that the bride and groom were officially married! It was a very stretched out ceremony but nonetheless, filled with happiness. At night, a pre-wedding party took place which is called the mhendi (another name for henna). This is actually a Hindu ceremony, but our culture grasped it and for some reason felt it necessary to include this in religion. At the mhendi, people just dance and celebrate. Being a more conservative family, we left early.

The nikkah ceremony minus everyone.

8.16.14 Saturday: In the morning, we finally had NOTHING to do in terms of the wedding. Everybody decided to go sightseeing and do their own thing. We all had to be back at the hotel and be ready by 6pm for the actual wedding ceremony (even though they were already married). My family and I went to the Cloud Gate since Chicago was our previous home and we had seen almost everything already. At around 7pm, we finally left the hotel to go the venue. It was at the Bristol Palace, which was decorated wonderfully. The night was long and I was so happy to know that they had Nescafe instead of chai. During the entire week I probably drank around 50 cups of coffee/chai. This was also the night that all the cousins decided to stay up all night at the hotel and just hang out. We ended up staying up in the hotel lobby until 4:30am and by that time it was time for all of us to pray Fajr.

8.17.14 Sunday: In the morning, someone from the bride's family hosted a post-wedding brunch at the Hyatt Lodge on McDonald's campus (IT WAS SO WEIRD). The staff had "Hamburger University" badges on their shirts. It was so pretty there though! It was so quiet and beautiful - a much needed ending to such a loud and busy week. After the brunch, everybody pretty much headed out. My family's flight was with my aunt (the groom's mother) and it was scheduled to be at 8:50pm. Until 6pm, we chilled at the hotel and then headed out. What happened next is so ridiculous but long story short, our flight was cancelled due to no reason and we ended up staying another day in Chi. We left Monday afternoon and reached home at 11:30pm.

Hyatt Lodge @ McDonald's Campus

Although this past week was filled with mishaps, I'm so happy for the bride and groom and wish them the best! It was a week filled with joy and I was so happy for family to reunite :)

C O L L E G E  L I F E:

Alright so I begin college tomorrow! I'm a little nervous/excited because I'm not sure what to expect regarding the intensity of my classes, but I've been praying it won't be something that I can't handle. It's really weird to think, "I'm about to start the rest of my life tomorrow". College is so much more than going to school for another four to six years. It's about getting a degree to start the rest of your life. It's about gaining a new group of friends who share the same interests as you and who will stick with you. It's about beginning new again and dipping into the surface of what a non-sheltered life is. It's about finally being independent and taking your future into your own hands. Now that I'm in college, I can slowly feel myself maturing and becoming independent. In a nutshell, I'm super excited to get started working the education field. Inshallah (if God wills), I will be able to graduate in three years, with honors. That's my plan, and it will probably be one hell of a ride, but I'm going to do it. 

~Misbah