Wedding Banquet

The banquet is held at Fairmont Pacific Rim which just opened in January. Many thanks to my dad who insisted on the place as it is beautiful (and of course very costly).

Once again, most of the ideas came from my sis, Silvia, and my wife, Sharon, who both came off as obssessive perfectionists when it came to wedding planning. Of course, they worked around the clock to give the wedding an identity and I confess, I am one of the most idle groom thanks to them (But apparently, guys are like that.....).

Manuel was gracious and kind enough to agree to be our MC even though the crowd required him to speak mandarin at parts. I contemplated whether to find him a nice, tall Chinese female host but decided against it as that may cramp up his loose and easy style. I personally thought that the small confusion at the introductions of special guests was cleverly covered up with wit (对不起，我是外国人。) . I take full responsibility for the screwup, after all, it is not an easy task for the MC when the rundown keeps changing every few minutes.

We had two music groups performing. First, the Eslite String Trip led by Ruth Huang performed for the reception. Then we have Luis and his gang from Music Vancouver to entertain during dinner. They were both amazing so I have heard from guests' reviews (I didn't have time to sit down and enjoy.)

There were many positive reviews, basically on how much things there were to do. In the reception area, which is opened all night, there are the photo booth, the candy table, the albums and the bar. If you stayed inside, then you could enjoy nice MVs, slides, music and food. In other words, we want you to have fun everywhere you go.

We have to thank Jennifer and Silvia, our coordinators for the event. Things would surely be a mess without them.

Last but not least, I want to thank Kent for taking such wonderful pictures and if I may just lament for a bit, we forgot to take enough family pictures at night!!

Wedding Ceremony

After going back to our place, we had a short photo session, family pictures mainly. Then we were onto the 2nd part of our wedding, the ceremony, which is held at our backyard. The whole setup was organized mainly by my sis, Silvia and Sharon.

Many thanks to Monica and Daniel for playing such wonderful music and Shota Shushi for well, their sushi. There are many more to thank, like Ms. Chen for her flower arrangements, Thomas Hobbs for their beautiful flowers and vases, so if I missed any, pardon me.

We got many praises for our chocolate fondue as well as the live butterfly release at the end of the ceremony. But I attribute a lot of it to good luck, as unreliable weather reports had us worried that it might rain. As the photos show, the weather was beautiful, it was perfect.

In actuality, we expected just about 30-50 guests, but so many of our friends took time off their busy schedules to make it, so it turned out close to 100 guests. I cannot express how touched I am to see all the familiar faces and to share my joy with them.

I guess it is now a signed and sealed deal - Married. At last.

迎娶

迎娶？什么东西啊？

毕竟我受的是西方教育，习惯了西方文化。而且被人玩弄也不符我形象。不过，老婆的第一个要求，还是尽量满足为妙。

不过紧张真是在所难免，早上错误百出，出门时忘了胸花和捧花。六台迎娶车队，分配人手就已经乱成一团。路上还碰上塞车，让人担心会误了迎娶吉时。不过，路塞很快瓦解了，我们也在原定时间抵达了新娘家。

看着可爱的两位花童带路，来到了大门，伴娘队跳出挡路，第一关：心心相应。从六个唇印中选出新娘的唇印。开什么国际玩笑！！心里大叫不妙。算了，不行大不了就付买路钱，再不行就硬闯！！闭上眼，随便指了指，就这个吧！什么？竟然猜对了。

第二关，体能测试，一分钟内做99下Push-ups。看了看我的朋友，还好有那四五个还算老当益壮，这关每人20下轻松而过。

然后，第三关，买路钱520，也就是我爱你的意思，照给就是。第四关，唱十首有“爱”或“LOVE”的歌。平常对音乐过耳不忘的我竟然卡机。几经辛苦，连郭富城的“对你爱不完”都用上了才过关。

最后一关，示爱。有完没完？人一紧张，什么诗词歌赋，鸟儿花香，一落而空。罢了！老婆，我爱你！！

岳父终于把老婆交给我。出门前，大家拥抱送别。我们也开始了另一个旅程。