Start 2018 with Fireworks, HOT Summer Weather and A WEDDING! (part 2)

DAY OF THE WEDDING

The morning of the wedding came, we got up at 5am, but the time went by so fast – hair, makeup, dresses, people arriving…… I am sorry to say that after I reflect on the day, I feel that I didn’t really live up to my Maid of Honour duties. I wasn’t there to help Tien with a lot of things…… dress changes, telling her to take a second to slow down and savour the moment, take a couple more photos…… *I  will do better at your next life milestone - like when you have a baby shower!

It was a sunny day and the hottest day of summer yet – around 40 degrees celsius. We had to wear an Ao Dai (traditional Vietnamese costumes) that is very form-fitting. At first I thought I would be very uncomfortable in it because of the heat, but actually I found that it wasn’t that bad. Maybe because it was already stuck to me? Or maybe the material is breathable? Or I was already very excited about the day so didn’t notice it? Anyways, I’m glad I got a chance to wear one, and it was made so well.

The Vietnamese Traditional Ceremony is similar to a Chinese Traditional Tea Ceremony for a wedding. The Groom goes to the Bride's home with an entourage of groomsmen and presents. They carried these in gold trays, and when they arrive at the Bride's the groomsmen will pass the tray to a bridesmaid. Tien and I didn't get to see this as we had to wait in the bedroom until the Bride's parents accepted the gifts and her mom would come in to the room to lead her out.

above: while Tien and I were waiting for the groom to "pick up" his bride -
he had prepared a gift and we decided to put together the puzzle/card, we were so nervous
we had a difficult time getting the first few pieces together, the photographer
gave up trying to photograph this moment :P

They didn't do much of the tea ceremony in a Vietnamese Traditional Ceremony (that's one of the difference compared to a Chinese Tea Ceremony), but they had to give offering to their ancestors. Then the Groom would bring his Bride home - in this case, they walked around the outside of their home and came back in. Then they did a simple ceremony in front of the Groom's ancestor's table.

above: a beautiful photo, wish I had one like that with Tien! We were supposed to! It was on our list of photos to be taken...

Now onto the western ceremony! The ceremony was very beautiful, Tien and Lam said their vows, and I got to sign as a witness on their marriage certificate! Such an honour, Tien do you have a photo of the certificate?

Tien and Lam planned their wedding ceremony to be outdoors with a picnic lunch reception. This suited their tastes and lifestyle, it was a beautiful setting, and the sunny day made the photos turn out great! I think it looks like we had a sunny day that was cool and breezy (and not the “Scorcher” that it really was).

 above: using the props that we made!

below: the yummy looking food also tasted good

 

You can see all the little decorative things we made also displayed at the ceremony and picnic – the wedding cake is particularly worth mentioning because it was made by Tien’s brother – N.T., and he had created it to remind Tien of the places she calls (/called) home – a layer of pandan flavoured cake to remind her of Vietnam, a layer of maple syrup flavoured cake to remind her of Canada, and a finger lime buttercream with cherry jam filling to remind her of Australia. Doesn’t he deserve the award of Best Brother Ever?

Wedding cake designed and made by N.T.

After the wedding and picnic, Tien and Lam went around Centennial Park and Little Bay for their private wedding session, here are some of my favourite shots from the photographer, can't wait to see more.

Then I made my way to Teresa and Steve’s for a day of rest and relaxation. We had soba that night – so good to help cool off from the hot day. And the next day I met up with Alison at The Grounds of Alexandria – a really good place that used to be an industrial factory and now it’s been renovated into a small garden/restaurants area.

The Grounds look so pretty, with a fountain and outdoor garden/greenhouse seating area, and then there was a flower shop and little food carts lining up, it was very cute, but it also seems a bit odd that you would have this in the middle of an industrial office building area. Also it is somewhat out of the way to go to if you don’t live/work around there.

We ordered food at one of the restaurants and I have to say that the food wasn’t that great. It sounds good and you would expect food in Australia to taste really amazing cuz you always see these photos posted online somewhere, but food in Australia is ok – but I wouldn’t say it’s better than anywhere else in particular.

After an early lunch, I went home and dropped off the flowers that I bought for Teresa and then went for a massage. It was so nice to treat myself to that after a week of work getting ready for the wedding – some quality ME time. Then I did some prep work for dinner – Teresa made Korean Seafood Tofu Stew!

left photo: homemade Korean seafood tofu stew and side dishes, so colourful!

Afterwards we went to have dessert at MeetFresh – it tastes like the one I had in Richmond, BC, but the price is like half of what it costs in Canada! It was only AUD $6.50, whereas in Canada I remember having it and it costs like CAD $13-15 with tax. Also, we asked for water and they gave it to us in bowls…. I guess they don’t have any cups at the store.

The next day was the start of my travels through Australia with my aunt, cousin and mom – so, early to bed!

*Most of the wedding related photos in this post are from Tien & Lam's wedding photographer.