And so I got married over last weekend. Now known as Mrs Feng :)So much has been happening that I did not have the time to update the space here. So here are some photos of my wedding day.
Me getting ready at home
Ms Huda and Me after my solemnisation
Uni friends
Cousins
Lovely shot of my gown
On the stage for the cake cutting
WAGs of the brothers and my purple evening gown
This weekend is my 过大礼 (Guo Da Li) or Bethrotal. Here is some explanation on what it means.
What is Betrothal?
It comprises of gifts and cash delivered to the bride’s home by the
groom. Of which the bride’s family will accept and return the reminder to avoid
giving the impression of “selling” their daughter.
Why is Betrothal
important?The Betrothal epitomizes the sincerity towards the marriage
between the bindings of 2 families and assures the bride’s family that she will
be well taken care of after marriage. It also shows the groom’s financial
dependability.
When should Betrothal be
done?two to four weeks before the wedding day.
Here's what our side has prepared for the Groom's side :) Courtesy of mum's hard efforts..
Last weekend, we had a mini getaway with Mum and Sis at Changi Beach Club. Went for a swim and a walk by the Changi boardwalk. It's a nice and serene place. Outside the hustle and bustle of Singapore's city skyline... It's like our last "trip" together as a family. I must thank mum for all she has done all these years and bringing us up and taking care of us. She will definitely miss me when I'm "married out".
Sis and Mum
Mum and I
Yeah I know, I haven't been touching this space in a long while. I've been procrastinating and been lazy to update. Partly because I get so tired after work and weekends are filled with wedding preparations that I'm just too tired to do anything during my free time. Was also preparing for my further studies in UK :D
Have to tackle one hurdle at a time first. Wedding, followed by getting ready for my Masters programme. Why we decided to do our Masters? Actually I am pretty contented settling with my degree but HTB wants to go overseas to study and we thought that this was a window opportunity to study for a year (yes UK Masters take only a year compared to US, Australia). Our flat will only be ready in 2014/15 and HTB's brother is expecting twins coming July. Therefore the house is going to be very crowded. According to Chinese tradition, you are not suppose to renovate your place when you are expecting child(ren). Therefore, HTB's brother and sis-in-law could not move. I think even when the twins are out, it's gonna be a handful for them to move out also.
So HTB wanted to study at the University of Surrey in Guildford, about 35mins by train from London. It is the top university in the UK for tourism which was what HTB wanted to do. For me I had a hard time deciding on where and what to study, so I just applied for Surrey (Criminology), King's College (Gerontology) and London School of Economics (Social Anthropology). My choice in Surrey was mainly because it was the same university as HTB, I thought Criminology was interesting. King's College was because Gerontology is related to my work area and now the government is focusing very much on aging population and aging issues, and King's is the only school in london to offer a Gerontology Masters by Course work. Social Anthropology at LSE was purely interest. HTB had also encouraged me to apply there because it is one of the top universities. But among the 3 unis, it is the only one that charges an application fee of 50pounds! (guess they receive overwhelming applications that they have to charge).
In the end, I got offers from all 3 universities and had a hard time choosing between, what is practical for the future, my interest, and being in the same uni as HTB (clingy me yes!). In the end, after much thought and pursuasion, I decided to go with my interest and take Social Anthropology at LSE. I know it is going to be tougher to study at LSE than the rest as I heard the people there are very well-read. But I guess I'll just make the most of my experience there and learn as much as possible.
Also, I had to inform my bosses about my plans and decided to take a year sabbatical to ensure that I have a job when I come back to Singapore. We'll see how things go. It's gonna be exciting but I am still a little apprehensive living in a foreign country with 4 seasons. I know, I am very aclimatise to the tropical hot weather and the wide range of cuisines that I will miss so much when I am there. Well I guess my honeymoon plans to Greece are shattered because of the $bomb$ cost of the wedding and now for the further studies. We will just take this 1 year as a "honeymoon" in a sense of the term.
For now, would need to focus on my wedding preparations ....... Argh........
Here's the menu for the night, with slight changes. We'll be changing the soup to a lighter broth. Super yummy and the guests will definitely not go hungry with an 8-course meal.
Suckling Pig, Wasabi Prawns, Pomegranate Chicken, Pacific Clam, Five Spice Roll
Braised Fish Maw with Shredded Abalone Sea Cucumber ad Conpoy
Sea Perch with Teriyaki Sauce
Sauteed crispy scallops with shimeiji mushroom and asparagus in XO sauce
Crispy Mongolian Chicken 'Pik Fong Tong' Style
Braised Sliced Abalone with Spring Vegetables and Golden Mushrooms
Fried rice wrapped in Lotus Leaves with seafood
Chilled coconut with aloe vera jelly
Yesterday evening, we had dinner at Shangri-La's The Line buffet to celebrate HTB's dad's birthday. The selection of food was amazing, there was western, chinese, japanese, lebanese, indian, mediterranean. I was seafood night yesterday where fresh seafood will be flown in every Thursday... Ate till I almost exploded, I didn't even try 1/4 of the food selection. There was just too much to take.
