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Showing posts from September, 2009

The Bridal Bed Installation.

One of the last traditional custom before the actual day customary wedding is the Bridal Bed Installation Ceremony ( 按床 ). A good fortune woman will install the bridal bed in the bridal room before the wedding day. There is a specific definition for "good fortune woman" - spouses are well and living, sons married and daughter-in-laws bore them grand children. In our case, we got 大姑 to help us. She's really good fortune indeed! :-) I can now countdown to my wedding day using a single hand! The feeling of being drained is slowly replaced by "butterflies"... Woah . Please please please come early for our wedding banquet so that we can start on-time! I hope everyone will enjoy the food (which we decided to prioritise when choosing the venue for the banquet) and have a jolly good time! See You! ;-)

The Bridal Dowry.

The delivery of dowry ( 送嫁妆 ) is another important custom. It represents parent's effort for her daughter to have a good life after marriage and prepare her with the necessities for being a good wife. I am amazed by some of the things included in the dowry. Of course, in our modern living, we will not be using some of those things... Nevertheless, I think it is all good to have them, as each item carries a good meaning for our blissful marriage. :-)

The Betrothal.

Most people are surprised that we took the trouble to pick the auspicious dates and went through all the traditional ceremonies. We thought that these Chinese customs are part of our culture. If we do not practice it, they will soon be lost with our generation. Therefore, we tried to understand the significance of each procedure and stick closely to them. At the same time, we were flexible to replace the items or simplify some procedures whenever it was impossible to do so. ;-p One of the most important event was the Betrothal Ceremony ( 过大礼/纳彩 ), where the groom presents gifts to the bride's family. Our parents had helped us to prepare the various items for the ceremony. I won't be explaining the steps, you can read them here . But I will show you some interesting photos of the gifts! All kinds of traditional candies... Oranges with the double-happiness stickers... Different types of tea (green tea, black tea, wu long, etc.)... The dragon and phoenix candles... Pig trotters..

Job Done, Er... Not Quite.

Previously, I had said I will post some photos of the new place. But I had been too busy, and all you saw till now were photos of empty rooms. ;-p Fortunately, a whole buncha you had already visited my place. Like all projects, it is still at the 99.9% completion state. It is just so tough to get the 0.1% done. For those who know what I mean, I am not referring to " QMS documentation ". The 0.1% are the enhancements that "prevent you from knocking onto your head"! Wahahaha . So sorry for those who got a taste of it. BBOF , that was really loud! ;-p So here are the photos I promised. The colour theme of my house is white so that it will be bright and spacious. And we used some vivid colours in the furnishing, such as the red and white dining chairs, the colourful ornaments and paintings on the wall, the green carpet, to inject life into the house! The view of neighboring flats from my balcony. My living room. I like it small and cosy. Some said I can play golf on my

Starts at One!

In the midst of hectic work schedule, house renovation and wedding preparation, we found time to celebrate our first year solemnization anniversary. It wasn't the grandest or most romantic of all. In fact, it was quite far off from other celebrations we had. But nevertheless, it was a very significant event. We had a simple buffet lunch and exchanged gifts. :-) Thoughtful as ever, my wife bought me new collared tee and two pairs of socks. She knew that I am wearing more "smart casual" attire to work recently, and my old ankle socks were worn out. The new tee will also be appropriate for the new house, everything needs to be new! I got her a watch because the straps of her old pink swatch broke. Although this isn't an expensive branded watch like a Cartier or Rolex, it is one of the best upgrade from the "Swatch" category which I can afford. Why? Take a look at the calendar, there are more important events coming: Actual Wedding, Dating Anniversary, Christmas