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The wedding ceremony and reception were held at Eastern and Oriental Hotel Guests were treated to a feast of the senses as the historical venues were transformed to exude heritage yet embracing contemporary celebration. Set against the ocean backdrop, the outdoor ceremonial area was adorned in European Classic-Victorian theme, where white roses, hydrangeas and phalaenopsis were arranged in Vintage Victorian pots. The scene of the couple exchanging their vows under the tree with hanging vintage lanterns was indeed picturesque. The ceremonial area was also strategically selected to be next to the covered terrace of the hotel in case of wet weather.

After the wedding ceremony, guests were invited to adjourn to the dinner reception in the main ballroom. Once the guests entered the ballroom, they were greeted with hanging floral arrangements on their tables and hundreds of colorful parasols suspended from the ceiling. The colors of the parasols were intentionally chosen to showcase Penang’s colorful culture. In addition to the canapés and sumptuous 4-copurse dinner, we brought in a party band that specialized in British pop and rock music which the couple loved. The mood of the dinner started with light-hearted series by Abba and escalated with great numbers from the band – Such as “We got Love” from Rihanna, which got the guests dancing on their feet. Following the couple’s first dance, just when everyone thought that it was the end of the evening, the mood climaxed with more dance sets by the band and DJ till the wee hours of the night.

It was a wedding filled with colours, laughters and dancing…

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In fact, the venue Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove was not the first choice for Priscille & Joel, it was another hotel which I couldn’t identify with as a perfect representation of Seychelles resort. Nevertheless, as a planner, my role is to create what the clients asked you to do. I recalled after few days of meetings at the first resort, just before I left for Singapore, Priscille asked me where do I fancy for lunch. My immediate reply was : Let’s go to Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove, and it was just there, I turnaround and ask my bride – why didnt we chose this place. She never thought the hotel could accommodate her guestlist of 300 pax, bcos the restaurant can only house half of that no. max, but knowing Hannah, I was stubborn, and I asked to meet the GM, and it was that unexpected lunch, we sold the idea to the General Manager, and got him excited to transform the viewing gallery of Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove into a dining experience no one in Seychelles can fathom of. Imagine installing and building trellis for 400sqm stretch of space, it was crazy but it was a worthy call to make it happen. At the end of the event, I asked Priscille’s dad a sincere heart to heart question : So do you still regret hiring me as the planner? and clearly his reply was : “Never “. He and his families have understood and seen the creative vision I have to fulfill the dream of his beautiful daughter.”

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Yet the truth was : the couples God has sent for me for Bali were all amazing and truly kind and loving couples. Many have kept in touch, and witnessing them sharing their kids growing up is a joy I cherish much. So what can I say about Bali destination weddings – when you are in Bali, take time to smell the roses even in the crazy mass of tourists and traffic jams. Be chilled and trust God for weather. I have done so many events here and rain plan was always a question. Yet even in the sight of dark clouds, strong winds and seemingly threatening weather conditions, not once we experience rain in the actual moments of the weddings.

Yes, that’s my infamous quotes : ” If you are kind, Heaven is always on your side.”. And looking back, God has blessed me with so many kind couples that often I still stand in awe of the wonders of nature at work in every of our events. To God be the Glory!

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I thought my role was just to transform the hotel so we spent much on designing all the sets, but I didnt expect what was important to my bride was the 58 dishes of India food we were briefed , and our next job is to propose detailed plating and cooking setting for each food station. Looking back, it was tough then, bcos the bride couldn’t have faith in what we do, but we pressed on to the final day because we cherished the partners that have recommended us, and the team of hotel sales, chefs and contractors who stood by us and whom we have enjoyed much working with. At the end, we were the first to complete a party setup 6 hours prior to the wedding reception time, and we received a surprised thank you note came from the bride’s contractors :

“Dear Hannah,
First and foremost thanks for your appreciation. I still remember our first meeting with you and Greg and the apprehension you had in handing over the entire fabrication to us. In fact, you wanted to bring guys from Singapore, even for pasting the floor stickers. I understand how discomforting it would have been for you, to trust and hand over this prestigious project to an unknown contractor. End of the day, we are happy that it had come up to your expectations and was well appreciated by all concerned.”
From all of us, we would like to once again thank you and team for giving us such a good design to work with. While we have done a number of events in the same venue, the way we both were able to transform the hall and the exterior, with your design, Himanshu’s illustrations and your engineer Bob’s lighting was amazing. It was a truly satisfying experience for us. Me and our team thorough enjoyed working with you and team and look forward to interacting with you in the near future.”

I learnt one thing : Never give up stretching yourself and  perfecting your vision, bcos the walls of Jericho will always come tumbling down 🙂

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The tricky part was it is not so easy to choose a venue at such late notice. We were looking for a pretty colonial house, and yet at the same time, we wanted to ensure every of our couple’s desires could be fulfilled – such as having hawker food served in a Western restaurant. In the end, Heaven is always on our side. The weather was perfect, the venue was beautiful and most of all the guests were happy to have a taste of Penang cuisines while party late at the wee hours. That’s our version of Pre-Wedding Party!”

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