Raveeha Rabbani - Week 15 - Foods That Bring Back Memories
Sometimes certain flavors and foods bring back memories of moments you have lived through in the past. Some tastes are so specific and unique that as soon as the first bite hits your tastebuds, you are taken back in time to when you tried that food for the first time. When I went to Pakistan over spring break I tried many amazing and spicy foods, however one of my most favorites was a simple orange popsicle. When I was a kid, I used to play in our neighborhood with my friends and around evening time each day the ice-cream man would come into every street of the neighborhood with his cart and sell. I still remember how all the kids would instantly run up to him and start telling him which ice cream they want. I used to already have money with me because before going out to play I would ask my parents for some money because I knew the ice-cream man was going to come. I remember how there were always so many options but I mostly chose the orange popsicle.
It was almost always hot where I lived so a popsicle was the best choice to cool down. The taste of that ice-cream will forever be ingrained into my brain. I still exactly remember how refreshing, fruity, and sweet it tastes.
The pictures I have attached are actually the ones I took a couple of weeks ago when I was there. I saw the ice-cream man in the street again and, just like old times, I ran out to buy from him. I bought the same orange popsicle I used to buy everyday some 6-7 years ago. The picture on the bottom is of the ice-cream cart I have seen in my neighborhood ever since I was a little girl. The taste of that popsicle brought back so many fun memories of when I used to play in the street with my friends every day.
Some foods truly are memorable!
Hello Raveeha! For me, it would likely be the one, the only liquid sugar in a box: Frooti. It's pretty iconic among younger Indian audiences, to the point that it would be extremely unusual to find a student who had never drunk the stuff. It has 15 grams of sugar for every 100 milliliters of the juice. I remember drinking it all the time for the brief period during the 2008 stock crash that I had moved back to my grandparents' place while my parents found new jobs and set their finances in order. Kinda a bummer, but it was just a year and they called me daily. My grandparents, unsure about how to care for a toddler may have spoiled me a little bit however... because every day there was some sort of feast going on at our house, and I had a little box of frooti every day when I went to school. Life was good , and sometimes I still drink some to remember those older, more carefree days.
ReplyDeleteHi Raveeha! As quite the enjoyer of food (sometimes I feel like I would literally die if I didn't eat food, I don't know if you guys feel the same or if this is just me), I too have tasted many foods. I feel like memories are far more easier to recall when they are linked to a specific sense, or feeling, and as a food eater, I also have many emotions locked behind taste. One strong memory that I have is of guobas, a crispy fried Chinese snack that tastes really good. At some point in my life, I went to China to visit my relatives. China has a lot of street food, which basically never misses. Since then, I've really adored street food culture, as a food enjoyer, and so, I really want to go back to China. Anyways, I remember my grandparents taking me out one day, and just buying a massive bag full of guobas, probably the length of my (then) arms, and stored within what may have been an (unused) garbage bag. Food is great, but a lot of food is even better. I would also remember that my grandparents would take me to convenience stores, and buy me ice cream, which tastes wonderful. I remember specifically liking the one of the green fruit sherbert ones - it may have been wintermelon or lime; a memory somewhat similar to the popsicle you talk about in your story. Now, everyday, when I see ice cream in a store, I salivate a little bit, and keep myself from buying it.
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