5th Year : Journeys For Two 2011 / 2012

Editor's Letter in JFT 2011 / 2012 Issue

Without realising it, Journeys For Two : Destination Weddings For The Stylish & Chic is in its 5th year. I still remember that faithful morning 5 years ago, sitting at Old Town Kopitiam in Sri Hartamas with Kris where we decided, yes, this was something we would do and see where it took us (just as long as I do not have to deal with any numbers was my only criteria. Haha!) and in a flash of a flash, it had taken us into our 5th issue.

For the last 5 issues, every year was a learning curve for us - well, I can't say I speak on behalf of the team. It was definitely a learning curve for me. How do we do better for the next issue? How can we hit more sales? How can we make the content more relevant? More interesting? What sales strategy do we deploy in closing the sales? How do we expand our reach? Etc.... Etc......  For me, every year saw me getting more and more organized and focused with the targets and working on newer angles for contents.....  but still, this is a team effort and decisions are largely based on how the team feels (err,... the team here would mean my boss - Kris Wong. Haha.) since most of the time, I come up with some brilliant idea that is just not executable :P

For me, part of the learning curve was also about putting one's ego aside while doing the editorial work. It's OK to have your articles edited by the Managing Editor :) "How come it is different from what I wrote??!" is usually my first question - but no hissy fit, please. At the end of the day, we all want the same thing - a great magazine and brand out there in the market which will continue selling itself every year...... (and thus paying for some of my holidays, and most recently, my tri race participation!). The real kudos of course, goes to the team from Weddings Malaysia that works on the magazine too!

And after a year's work to get the last issue out (and it IS out now, sold at major bookstores - woohoo!), we are starting to work on our 6th issue already and I'm keeping my fingers crossed to be able to clinch this new content deal across the borders - since already gotten the green light from Da Boss Man :) So, with some luck, we'd have yet another exciting issue serving up! Who knows where this issue will take us then, since we had been trawling exotic beaches and beautiful highlands, embracing different cultures, appreciating history and heritage and keeping up with growing trends thus far.

p/s : Despite the perception of Kris Wong being anal and whose virtue really isn't patience, it has been a breeze working with him. We just both have to answer each other's emails on time. ROFL. Here's to another GREAT issue, Kris!

(for photo credit of the above picture - go get your copy of JFT now!) 

Bali Travels : Part 2 – Debs Joins In The Fun in Kuta and A Pre-Wedding Dinner at Jimbaran Bay

9th October 2010


After all the face-stuffing last night, I woke up early for a swim at the lap pool. Of course, Kris said he’ll join me and I woke him up half an hour earlier than the agreed time – 6.30am! I rang his doorbell “incessantly” as he puts it, and he grumpily shouted “Who’s that?!” and I cheerily replied “It’s me! Time for morning swim!!” to which he grunted a grumpy “I’ll join you later!!” Laughing at the mischief that I had caused, I skipped to the pool. I was surprised that the water wasn’t as cold as I thought it’d be. After my 50th lap, Kris finally came and joined me and I completed 2.5km before breakfast. I do not know how may laps he did :P After breakfast, I completed another 1.5km to make it a total of 4km for the day – and damn proud of it!

Before you knew it, it was time to check-out from Maya Ubud. Both of us did something really funny at our villas – seeing as we haven’t utilized our private plunge pool during our stay, we all undressed and skinny-dipped in the pool – even if for just a couple of minutes. Oh – Kris did that in his own villa and we did ours in our own villa in case anyone has any funny thoughts.

We skipped lunch and our transport took us straight to the airport to pick Aunty Debra. We arrived 30-minutes earlier and ok, we got bored with the waiting. We had even prepared a placard with welcome details for Aunty Debs. After half-an-hour, I was basically asking every Tom, Dick and Harry who came out of the arrival hall if they were Debra. “Are you Debra? Are you Debra?” – including a gwai lo. Out of boredom, the three of us had conjured up lots of theories as to why our dear Aunty Debs was taking soooo long! But finally, she arrived – grinning merrily as usual.

And it was away to check-in to Villa Diana at Legian which was pre-arranged for the wedding entourage. Most of the wedding entourage stayed here – including the couple themselves before they checked into the wedding venue. This was a really nice little resort hotel and MOH and I got upgraded to the Deluxe Villa!

As usual, we were starving by the time we settled in and our transport took us to the Double Six Beach for lunch. It was close to 4pm by the time we had lunch – but eat we did at Tekor Bali. And then, we took to the beach! Kris and I went into the water and really had damn a lot of fun with the rolling waves! MOH joined us later and Aunty Debra kindly looked after all our belongings. We resumed some of our “Bali’s Next Top Model” shoot here before heading back to get ready for the dinner at Jimbaran Bay.

We were a little bitchy with the timing and our rides – but we did get to the dinner venue – Teba Cafe right on time. However, being early doesn’t have much advantages if everyone else were hell-bent on keeping to Malaysian times :P We waited a good hour plus before dinner. Alas! Dinner was not great for me – the main was ….. fish! But the company was great (not sure about the other tables, but we had great people at our table!). Cindy and Connie finally joined us here and lots of catching up and sharing stories and tales – since Cindy & Connie both had been out with the bride & groom the whole day for their wedding portraits session.

After dinner, we all (all, meaning the younger crowd) went over to Ku De Ta for drinks. Jolly, jolly me – alcohol it will be since not training for the week! Kris, Debs, MOH and myself didn’t stay long at Ku De Ta. After lots of photos, we decided to call it a night.

10th October 2010

With Debra around to keep him company, Kris had automatically moved breakfast hour to 8.30am. Fine, MOH and myself adjusted to that too and after breakfast, we had a quick tanning session to get some glow for the night’s festivities before we headed out to Murano Spa.

Since the Boreh was highly recommended, MOH & I went with the Boreh as well. Now, I’m not a spa person because sitting still for a long period of time gets me restless and fidgety. Hardly relaxing at all for me. Well, the couple’s room at Murano wasn’t smelling fantastic – especially as soon as I placed my face into the hole. Oh dear. How am I going to endure 1.5 hours of this? That wasn’t the worse – the stuff they used for the Boreh was also not smelling fantastic – it was like minyak cap kapak to me – which I absolutely detest. OMG factor two. I tried to close my eyes and think good thoughts but the smell kept playing havoc with me. Needless to say, I was wishing for time to fly! Of course, whilst I was squirming in my hot wrap, MOH was snoring away and I also learnt later that Kris and Debs had enjoyed their session as well. They are all spa kakis!!

After the highly un-enjoyable spa session (for me), we hit the extremely ‘macet’ Kuta/Legian stretch for shopping and lunch. We bought Crumpler bags and stopped at Oey for lunch. After lunch, it was a rush back to Villa Diana to get ready for D-Day!!!

Bali Travels : Part 1 – A Much Anticipated Trip with New Travel Mates

After more than a year’s wait, we have finally arrived in the month of October, which marks our annual trip to Bali. This year’s trip, would be different in so many aspects – new travel mates, a destination wedding where I get to attend as a guest (FINALLY!) and a small anniversary celebration for MOH & I.


The first part of the trip would actually be Kris, MOH and myself – with Debra joining us later. While MOH planned the itinerary (with some approvals from me, of course), there were much worry about traveling with friends whom I had never traveled with before. The usual thoughts – would the itinerary be suitable? How easy-going are we all? Would there be awkward silences? Would there be too much PDA (on our part that is!)? Would some feel left out? Ohh… the list goes on. I'm sure all of us have had our fair share of Travel-Zillas!! :P

Well, the worrying all amounted to nothing. As Kris put it – to be good travel companions, when one says “follow your itinerary”, they follow through and have fun instead of following-through and bitching about it. I guess it is important that the group you travel with are in-sync somewhat – always prepared for adventures and always ready to explore something new. Most importantly, is keeping an open-mind and with that, keeping options opened and using the itinerary as a guide (so we do not miss all the good food places!!) and not something to abide by strictly!

Kris & Debra proved to be really great travel companions (and hoping they feel the same about MOH & I!). They were sporting and conversations never ran out. I think Kris and I had a bit more of a “crazy streak” – as in, we really did let ourselves go during the holidays – taking endless photos (much to Debra’s annoyance!), eating non-stop (more me than Kris), rolling around in the giant waves at Double Six Beach… basically, just making sure we had 100% fun. We’ve worked hard and this is time to de-stress, yes? Of course, Kris wasn’t so impressed with the 6.30am wake-up call for a morning swim nor the “power walks” – I will never hear the end of this! Anyway.....

7th October 2010

Kris, MOH and I touched down in Bali and was promptly greeted by Agung, our driver who would be ferrying us to Ubud. The ride was uneventful but of course, spirits were high since we had only just arrived and we had more than a week here! Hooray! Bali had always been a favourite spot for MOH and I, simply because aside from all her charms and the extremely warm and friendly locals, here was where we fell in love, had our first kiss and coming full cycle – held our wedding. We make it a point to get into Bali at least once a year.

We arrived Ubud Inn at around 2.30pm. The Ubud Reader’s & Writer’s Festival was on-going when we arrived and I was disappointed that I would be missing it even though I was right there in Ubud. Nevermind, there’s always a next time! This also explained the full-house situation for almost all the resorts in Ubud! After checking-in we were starving! We took a walk out to The Laughing Buddha for lunch and agreed that lunch was good – because we were so hungry. After lunch, we immediately got down to business – SHOPPING! We went to the Ubud Market and finished our souvenir shopping right there! Talk about efficiency! For some reason, time just flew by when we were shopping and by the time we took a long walk back to the hotel, it was almost time to get ready for our dinner. But of course – there’s ALWAYS time for a quick dip in the pool.

The pick-up service from Warung Murni came to pick us up for dinner. At Warung Murni, we ordered the Sate Lilit for sharing and I had the Mee Goreng while Kris and MOH both had the Nasi Goreng. Kris soon discovered that MOH was the Nasi Goreng King while I was the Mee Goreng Queen. Almost every meal – as long as it was on the menu, we’d order the same thing. Not for the lack of trying other stuff – but I love noodles and I especially love the Indonesian noodles so I am going to eat as much of those as I can whilst here!! So far, for this trip, Murni’s Mee Goreng turned out to be the 2nd best. You’ll have to read on to find out who served the best Mee Goreng for me this time around. By the way – I do not order my Mee Goreng as it is. It is always “tak mau sayur, tapi Cili banyak-banyak!!”

Our plans to get to the Gianyar Regency night market was scrapped due to rain. We ended up asking the driver to drop us off at Jalan Hanuman instead. We strolled the streets of Ubud under the light drizzle and found a place for desserts – Buntute, where we had cakes and drinks and listened to a Bob Marley lookalike doing his thing on stage. After that, it was back to Ubud Inn for much needed sleep!

8th October 2010

I woke up really rather early and I went out for a morning walk by myself while the two boys continued snoozing. The air was crisp and cooling and it was a really nice walk because the entire town was still asleep! I came back in time for our breakfast at 7.30am (again, a timing which to Kris & Debra was murderous!) at Ubud Inn. The spread was simple – which augurs well because it meant that we could eat more for our mid-morning tea! After brekkie, we walked to the Ubud Market again – this time to get garlands for Leticia and Tjun Hong – the soon-to-be-wed (of course, at the time of this article, happily married already!) as we were meeting them and their entire jing-bang at Ibu Oka’s for lunch. We customized two lovely, lovely garlands for them.

More window shopping and as we anticipated, a stop for mid-morning snacks at this place called Kafe. The ambiance was really quite nice and the cakes were not bad. I even had a scoop of the Sesame Ice-cream! Yums. Then, we walked back to Ubud Inn. Here’s where it got rather interesting – while passing Monkey Forest, I was robbed – by a bloody huge monkey. I was just only warning Kris and MOH to guard their belongings as the monkeys would likely snatch them when this huge-ass monkey came charging at me. Within seconds – he had snatched one of the garlands away and I was left there with a torn plastic bag! Oh – Kris and MOH just stood there laughing :P Well, what to do? The groom will have to go without the garland then :P I picked a bunga raya from Ubud Inn for the groom instead. That will have to do!

Leticia’s entourage arrived a lot earlier than the agreed plan so we hurriedly checked-out from Ubud Inn and joined her at Ibu Oka’s for lunch. It was really too packed and honestly, the babi guling here wasn’t that great – at least not for me or MOH. So far, the best babi guling we had in Bali was still the one served at our wedding in Kayumanis. Juicy, tender and flavourful! Anyway, after more photos, photos and photos, the bride & groom had coffee with us (this would be the 4th meal/drink break within half a day already!!) and after catching up some, Kris, MOH and myself left the lovebirds to do their thing while we left to check-in to Maya Ubud Resort & Spa.

The resort was ….. lovely! However, I can’t say the same about the service. It just lacked….. the personal touch. And it wasn’t nice to keep guests waiting for a room without notice – even after the room was ready! But I guess, running back-to-back 100% occupancy can do that to you so perhaps, it was just our luck. By the way – this stay of ours – where Kris and ourselves had one villa each for one night is courtesy of Journeys For Two – the Managing Editor and the Editor were clearly enjoying the fruits of their labour!

Without wasting much time, we walked over to enjoy the Jungle Luxe poolside. This was really rather breath-taking and the views were serene. For anyone wanting a wedding surrounded by lush nature, this should be the spot! Anyway, we all had a great time at the pool – which also marked the start of our “Bali’s Next Top Model” photo shoot session for the trip! *grin*. Let’s put it this way – we were all on a holiday and we were all not camera-shy – as long as the photos do not fall into the wrong hands! (FB here we come!!)

Afternoon tea was served at the Terrace and I went a little overboard with the cakes as after all that swimming and posing, I was starving!! We walked around the resort for a little bit before going back to our separate villas to enjoy the facilities there. The bath tub was huge – which was great. For some reason, MOH and I always enjoy our “deep meaningful” chats whilst in the tub.

Dinner for us was at Bebek Bengil’s – and we were not disappointed at all with our food. Cripsy Duck as well as Bebek Bertutu. After dinner, we took a 25 minute drive to Gianyar Regency to venture the local night market – Pasar Senggol. For all of us, this was our first time in Gianyar and this was pigging-out final round for the day. It was really gluttony when just right after dinner, we still had babi guling, sate lilit, sate kambing, fried chicken and bakso at Pasar Senggol. OMG indeed!! The babi guling – I have to say – was the best!!! So it had officially knocked the Kayumanis’ one off the top position now. Gianyar is said to be famous for its babi guling and for people who traveled into Gianyar and left without trying the babi guling, it is said that they hadn’t been to Gianyar! The bakso was good, the sate was good…. Mmmmm….. YUMMY.

MOH and I are really pasar malam junkies and wherever we travel to, we always love venturing into the local night markets. We know here is where the best local food can be found – as long as you have a strong stomach for it! Of course, I was delighted that Kris was as much a pasar malam foodie as I was!! This Gianyar trip was well worth it and glad the weather was favourable!!

After Gianyar, it was straight back to the villa for our second night in Bali – in a second hotel in two days.

My Editorial Message in Journeys For Two

It's been a year's work getting the magazine out but finally - it is out NOW and available to all. I am personally very glad to have been given this opportunity by Kris Wong from Weddings Malaysia to work on Journeys For Two - an area which is rather close to my heart (and my work :P) and as Kris had mentioned - we will be brainstorming for the next issue while we sip on Long Island Iced Teas at Maya Ubud this coming October :)

Thanks to ALL!

The Editor's Letter
Considering the effects of the economic downturn, we are certainly very grateful to be back with our 4th issue of Journeys For Two – Destination Weddings For The Stylish and Chic. A big round of applause goes out to all who have believed in us and supported us despite the effects of the economic scenario. I would also like to personally extend my appreciation to Kayumanis Nusa Dua for helping me arrange my once-in-a-lifetime wedding. It was fun and oh-so-memorable for us and our guests. Kudos to the team at Kayumanis Nusa Dua.

In this issue, we continue to bring you fabulous destination wedding locations, ranging from the affordable to the luxurious, from the contemporary to quirky and also adding in some eco-friendly venues for those who would like to make a small difference in the world. Coupled with some views and thoughts on destination wedding choices from vendors as well as married couples, we hope this will help you make a sound decision for your dream destination wedding.


"I dreamed of a wedding of elaborate elegance; a church filled with flowers and friends. I asked him what kind of wedding he wished for; he said one that would make me his wife.” – Anonymous

** snapshot of page 3 of the JFT magazine

Sometimes There Are Knots...

I've been very bad with keeping my blog up-to-date. Everyday, I have new things I wish to put in my blog. And then a lot of things get in my way. The 'things' getting in my way may seem to be excuses, but when I write, I prefer to be in the right frame of mind (unless I am writing in anger - then I don't give a shit).

It's been a long week and it's not exactly over. I just thought I'd take my mind elsewhere and I came to my friend's Kris' blog. Sometimes, it is so easy to be inspired. And without disappointing, a few of his posts did snap me out of it (at least for now, for me to write on my blog).

Kris wrote about the choice of getting rid of individuals who are "negative" for oneself. Sometimes, I get really tired - not from working on the real work, but from dealing with people. It can be really tiring - when you have to smoothen the edges of ruffled feathers, or having to dance on egg shells around someone, or if you're trying to convince a recalcitrant client who insists that you're supposed to fork out your own per diems,.... or simply, your own staff or even a stranger at the pool.

I really enjoy my non-team sports training. Swimming, Cycling and Running - all of which... are individual sports. Especially in the pool - when you're away from everything and you're just counting laps and pushing for a personal best time. My time in the pool and the gym are almost like my sanctuary. Until this little drama that occured a few days ago.

After living in Cambodia for close to 2 years now, I am getting more and more disgusted with the people here - and this is a whole new story for another day. One of the thing about them (and I know I am generalizing) is their seemingly non-existent basic hygiene knowledge. They throw rubbish everywhere, even right in front of their own homes, they spit everywhere, they pee everywhere and they blow their noses into the pool.

It greatly annoys me and disgusts me. Now, a few days ago - I was beginning my swim - and I was a little late - I usually swim at 4.30am - an hour where I have no need to share the pool with anyone. But on that particular day, I was there at 6am and so were a few other locals. One middle-aged man was happily blowing is nose and clearing his throat and spitting it all out at the edge of the pool. Annoyed, I told him "Please don't do that. It is dirty." I didn't shout, I didn't raise my voice, I told him politely, albeit firmly. Then I went on my swim.

When I got out of the pool, this idiot came back and started shouting at me. "Do you know who I am?!!! Do you know who I am???!!! You have no right to tell me not to do anything!!" Not wishing to cause a scene, I quickly got dressed while he continued his verbal diarrhoe. Irritated, I told him "No, I really have no idea who you are. I'm sorry." And then menacingly, he threatened me! "You better be careful. You better watch out."

I can't believe the nerve of him. But then again, this is one of those "Welcome to Cambodia" factors - which is really getting under my skin. Even a miserable lowly minister in the government can get away with murder. And I have no clue who this guy was!! As I hate having to watch my back everywhere I go, I made a distress call to a friend. At least, I'm slightly comforted by the fact that I am just a phone call away from mobilizing the PMU (Prime Minister's Unit) guards. I wonder how near they are should I really be sprayed with... say acid?? Hmmm... (But if anything does happen to me - remember - it can only be this guy from the Himawari gym!!!)

As it turned out, I'm still here, writing my blog. As Kris would say - that was a probably a "close shave". And maybe I should "live life to the fullest everyday". And maybe I should equip myself with more positive thoughts. And maybe I should "pursue my aspirations now rather than later." Try. Try. Try.

Like Kris, I am also, still.. a work-in-progress.

Reflections

Taking an inspiration from my partner-in-crime Kris' blog, I'm taking some time to piece together a whole lot of thoughts going on up there in my grey matters.

I reflect every week - on the week that was... maybe that's why I hadn't been able to see a clearer, bigger picture ahead. But for the past 4 months or so, I had a very clear picture that keeps coming back to haunt me. It is telling me to stop procastinating and do what I had always wanted to do in life - save the world.

Since I was a child, I've always had compassion for the people who are less fortunate than I. Perhaps, it was my upbringing, I'm not sure. Even as a child, when I visited the old folk's homes or orphanages with my parents, I would cry just to see the pitiful state they lived in.

From then on, I had this dream - I want to open a centre, I want to rescue as many unfortunate people as I possibly can. And I always thought - to do that, I need money. Lots of it. So therefore, I worked hard. I worked hard and subsequently, I started my own business. Suddenly, this dream took a backseat. For you see, in life, as we grow, we realise we need money for a lot of things - sometimes, just to survive, sometimes to splurge on ourselves (for me, my sin is books, books, books), sometimes, to splurge on the people we love because they so deserve it, the list goes on.

I admit, whilst over the years, I had always had the same thought (saving the world!!) torment me over and over again, I had always managed to convince myself that the world is too big for me to save. I am a tiny, mediocre woman, who can't do anything to end world poverty. Nor can I do anything to stop the unnecessary wars that are happening everywhere around the world. As such, I lived my life... believing I am convinced.

The thought of doing humanitarian work really does come back out to the foreground a lot. But always pushed back - there is always something more important to do - I have a business to run, I have got deadlines to meet, I have got partners and shareholders I am accountable for, I have a family to take care of (by that, I mean my parents, grandma and whoever else in the family who might need my help) again, the list goes on.

Of course, in between that, I tried to do my bit for charity. When I was a Ranger in school - I remembered being part of the stand-by team for the Highland Towers emergency, I remembered donating my entire month's salary to the North Korean famine, I am a volunteer with Mercy Malaysia, I published a whole set of poems and sold them to raise funds for Mercy once (and never thought to at least save one set for my own collection!!), when the 2004 tsunami happened, I volunteered to go to the disaster areas with Mercy only to be rejected because I would be more of a cry-baby burden than I would be of help when faced with the disaster simply because I wasn't trained to face them..... I try to feed homeless people on the street (of course, living in Cambodia, I lost a lot of compassion for the people on the street - but this is another story!), I volunteer my time at an orphanage for children with HIV and surprised myself with the way I deal with them and see them, I train some of the less fortunate youth in Cambodia to empower them to do something better with their lives and I create job opportunities for them..... this list goes on too.

When the legendary King of Pop passed on, I was re-inspired to follow in his footsteps. I took one tiny step forward and was once again, overwhelmed by the sheer size of the unfamiliarity and shamefully - loss of income, I took ten steps back. I argued with myself (you know, the devil and angel in your head arguments)... that the King of Pop was a millionaire. The King of Pop had a legion of fans who would heed his words. I was.... nothing. I told myself, I couldn't do it.

And so, I went back to the mundane life of chasing after clients, who by the minute of every f***ing day, was frustrating me with their neanderthal attributes. Chasing after clients who were only concerned on making sales with an extremely shrunken budget. Don't get me wrong. I still do love my job and I enjoy the challenges it poses. Except that, lately, I feel less than a "nothing" doing it. I feel like a big loser. Why?

I reflected and realized that I had chickened-out facing bigger issues and taking on something unfamiliar. No wonder I felt like a "nothing". A small one at that!!

Then, I started on The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I had bought the book a year ago, but only got around to reading it last month. To those familiar with the book - imagine my excitement! I had been one of those people who kept ignoring the "omens" and thus, led a mundane life of doing something (the only thing I thought) that I can do, that I can say I at least enjoy doing... but it gave me no greater pleasure than that. All of a sudden, everything began to make sense. The author had said we should heed the omens and search for our destiny. I realised I had ignored my omens for far too long.

And then, the author said when one decides to seek for his or her destiny, everything in the universe will conspire to help you find it. I reflected back at all the omens, right up to the current one - of stumbling upon Slumlight, and using my business platform to help them, of meeting the lady behind Slumlight and being inspired by her story (though, she reminds me rather uncannily of the character Phoebe from "Friends"), and not to mention, being re-acquainted with Relief Web after a long, long hiatus. Thinking that dreams do come true, I even submitted my "under-qualified" CV to a reputable NGO in hope that I would be hired for a position they have vacant. My fingers and toes are crossed. But we'll cross the bridge when we get there.

I believe, 2009, whilst it had been a rather tough year, career-wise, my many reflections had helped me see me for who I am and where I want to be. I am of course thankful for the powers up there (I am sorry for all the "Why Me?!" complains) for letting me lead such a colourful life thus far. And of course - my parents, my friends, and my partners-in-crime (partners - you know who you are - you guys have been a steady block for me and it gave me the strength to continue battling it out everyday), who had been nothing but supportive throughout. Most of all, to MOH - who had relentlessly encouraged me and gave me the wings to fly (if I gave up everything - he had promised to continue feeding me, sheltering me and buying me my books)

I am re-inspired once again. But this time, I intend to keep walking and trudging ahead with my tiny steps, no matter how far this journey will be. I now welcome 2010 with great pleasure. Happy New Year to all :)

AWP Turns 1

Today was the 1st year anniversary bash for the Association of Wedding Professionals Malaysia (AWP) and being stuck here in Cambodia, I just had to be a part of it, considering the organizing committee had worked really hard at putting this together. (and honestly, I hate being left out!!)

Well, my partners in crime (special thanks to Carolyn!!) were more than happy to skype me into the whole affair and watch the proceedings. So I got my mic and headphones ready - only the second time ever that I am using this device - for that matter - my webcam as well.

Oh to be at the mercy of technology!!! When we tested the video call half hour before the party started, the only thing working was the webcam!! I could see them and they could see me. But I couldn't hear s***. Ok, don't panic. We figured perhaps I was using an older version of MSN. So I downloaded the latest version - which, by the way, was a miracle that it took faster than normal considering the 256k speed in Cambodia.

All set - testing Round 2. Still no sound. Which we finally agreed, better than nothing. So I watched the proceedings in "mute mode".... with Carolyn feeding me the updates over the chat box. I have to say, it was pretty interesting and as always, a simple yet fun event which everyone worked hard on has come to life and that is always a joy to see. Of course, a heartfelt thanks goes out to all who have supported our endeavours throughout and believed in us.

I think at the end of the day, it just goes to show that even though we come from different walks of life, different types of businesses, different personalities, (not to mention, some of us are in different geographical location altogether! :P) but when we put our heads and our hearts together, we can create big things.

This is the quality that I admire from my co-workers. We set aside our differences and we work towards one goal. Sure, there are lots of bitching and tears and frustrations, but in the end, we have a laugh, we talk about each other's "longkangs" (private joke - ask Carolyn & Leticia) and we treat ourselves to good food (whilst they went ahead to have a good lunch, I had myself a glass of wine to celebrate too!)

Even in the emails - which we probably receive and send over a hundred to each other in a day (no wonder I am accused of having an online affair with Leticia!) - we banter, we instruct, we brainstorm, we shout, we scream (yes,... all in the emails)... we even SLAP each other (nowadays, used a lot more widely and frequently - thanks to Kris)... BUT, we get the job done.

As in the end, we believe that a little madness helps keep us sane. And we are really the "crazy wedding GANG" - yes a gang. I hope this friendship and partnership will only continue to flourish - if not for the good of the business, at least for the good of our own sanity.

Congratulations AWP - and CONGRATULATIONS to all those people behind AWP. We soldier on.

My Wedding

When you mention a wedding planner getting married, it is an immediate response to conjure up images of Vogue-inspired gowns, perfectly manicured decor and settings, picture-perfect ambience and a prim and proper guest list.
Having been in the wedding business for seven years plus now, I did not want any of those. I wanted a fuss-free wedding. But I think more than that, both the groom and I wanted something that reflected us – our love, our personalities, including the fact that we were not perfect.

Being a great advocator of destination weddings, we decided to have the wedding in Bali. Bali was something that came naturally to the both of us – simply because this was where we first fell in love, so it felt like we had come full circle. We were both “beach bums” and an island/beach wedding suited us perfectly – no frills, no fuss – come in your bikinis and sarongs, hula shirts and all. This was us!

Throughout the wedding planning months before the wedding, I was particularly worried about being a “bridezilla” myself, having handled a fair few. I realised that my want for simplicity was clashing tremendously with the excitement of my friends from the same business! I didn’t want hair and make-up, I didn’t want flowers, I didn’t even want a wedding gown.... I was driving all of them nuts. I was becoming a “bridezilla”!

Even the team at Kayumanis was a little baffled when I said I didn’t want flowers. Whilst I would usually be very aware of how the cake looks and taste for my clients, for my own wedding, I told the pastry chef to “surprise me” – which he did indeed. Pleasantly, though. You see, it really was different when you’re handling someone else’s once-in-a-lifetime compared to when you’re handling yours.

For my own wedding, I didn’t care so much about it being perfect. I wanted it more to reflect our personalities, and our love. We didn’t care about flowers because throughout the years we’ve been together, my other half had never bought flowers for me because I am not a flower person! But we did care about the song we chose for our walk-in and walk-out, we cared about using some of the paraphernalia from our courtship in the wedding and we did care about our wedding favours helping a poor Cambodian family survive better.

However, being in the wedding industry and with so many good friends in the industry, my dream of walking down the aisle with just a white bikini and sarong was just me being dreamy and idealistic. I remembered my gown designer saying “I’ll slap you!” when I requested for a simple sarong wrap. I also remembered my hair & make-up artist who also wanted to “slap” me because I went and cut my hair short a few months before the wedding (this was the point where I was called “bridezilla”, I think!) and of course, I remembered my Mom fretting at the fact that I was walking in with “two bunches of bananas” (empty handed).

But in the end, with enough emotional blackmail from my beloved Mom & Dad (and I mean this sincerely), and the numerous “Ho sim la! You are a wedding planner la! You don’t jaga your reputation, we also must jaga ours!” propagandas, I had my hair done, I had very light make-up on (which surprised everyone when I sat like a meek angel and let them do my hair and face) and I even walked down the aisle with a few stalks of maroon calla lilies. I felt every inch like a bride.

But I really think my other half had to be saluted. He took the reigns of planning the wedding because he didn’t want me to feel as if it was ‘work’ – to plan my own wedding. He made most of the decisions (only most, not all.J) whilst I was busy with my other businesses. Having the both of us based in Cambodia meant a lot of co-ordination between Cambodia, Bali and KL. When people ask me who was my wedding planner, without hesitation I would answer that it would be my other half. Having said that, we are very thankful for the help we got from our friends in the industry. Honestly, here is where I would recommend wedding planners to anybody – including wedding planners themselves.

The other thing we both were particular about was the wedding photography because those lasted a lifetime. We requested for the photographers to take casual shots of us in our “pak toh” mode along the streets of Kuta. The fun part was that – they were to behave like the paparazzi! Believe me, a lot of people thought we were some sort of celebrity when we started our photo session. It was fun and it was all part of the wedding experience we wanted.

When the moment for the wedding came – I was anxious. I did not want to make the same mistakes that I had seen a million of my clients do – they forget to bask in the moment. I was particularly conscious of reminding myself that I want to remember the moment when I walked down the aisle with my Dad and the feeling I was in. I didn’t want the feeling of just getting it over and done with. And this was the highlight of my wedding.

I remembered walking in to the chorus of “High” by Lighthouse Family, our chosen song. For me, the chorus was perfection. It was a message we told ourselves in our relationship – as long as we are together, we will overcome any obstacles there are in our path. I made it a point to pay attention to the vows which we wrote ourselves (which we later got tattooed on each other by our personal Bali tattooist) and I had butterflies in my tummy! I’ve always had butterflies in my tummy when my clients walked down the aisle as I hold my breath and pray everything goes smoothly for them in their once-in-a-lifetime moment and I didn’t think I would get them for my own wedding. But there they were! I was blinking back tears as my husband-to-be read his very long vows (which made some of our guests cry).

We had a small reception of sixty close friends and family. Even with the small number, we felt it was difficult to spend enough time with all of our guests. Whilst some of them travelled from Cambodia, a whole lot more were guests whom we had not met for over a year since we were both based out of the country. Time spent with each one of them was too short. But their presence and blessings at our wedding made it a perfect memory.

All in all, as a wedding planner, this was one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever witnessed – not just because I was the bride, but because the one thing that really stood out from it was that there was a lot, a lot, a lot of laughter. From the surprise video presentation (courtesy of the “gang” from the wedding industry) to the lap dance from the groom to the funny anecdotes in our vows and all the speeches and to me, this was how a wedding should be. There were two power trips (I counted and noted because I could not help it – I notice these things!!) but hey, that small bit of imperfection could not overshadow what I really, really felt was a perfect wedding – at least to the both of us.
Love in fish-eye view...

With this wedding, I’ve come away believing that whilst grandeur, beauty and perfect planning accentuates a wedding celebration, it cannot replace the love and support from your close friends and family, the feel-good vibe that they sincerely vibrate at your wedding – including shedding a tear or two for you, and the fun and laughter that they provide to make your wedding a truly memorable one. For that, from the bottom of our hearts, we thank each and every one of our friends and family who travelled all the way to Bali and making it such a wonderfully memorable wedding for the both of us.