Marnessa Wedding

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A month do the day after my last blog post....at least I'm consistent in my silence! I won't lie, I've been cheating on this blog...I'm having a love affair with my new blog "Leave and Explore". It's very different, more reflective and personal, a bit more nitty gritty on my serious thoughts and opinions on the vagabond lifestyle, as opposed to simple accounts of actual trips. I highly encourage you all to check it out and follow me here: http://leaveandexplore.wordpress.com/

As always, I value your input. It is fairly recent, still working out which direction I want to take it. But I find it fun to write, so I guess that's the important bit!



Now I have a Sparknotes version of my most recent adventure for you...

In early July, shortly after a little red, white & blue celebration, I flew to Hong Kong for the wedding of my dear high school friend Vanessa to her now-husband Mark Hofacker (pronouned hah-fake-er). Vani is from HK, Mark is originally from Montana, and the two met at Vanderbilt several years ago. With a quick 12-hour flight from LA to Beijing, then 3 hours from Beijing to Hong Kong, plus a 4-hour layover and a 4-hour weather delay, I was in Asia in a blink! Vani picked me up from the airport Monday afternoon, we ran some errands in the city, and then it was back to the international arrivals gate to receive the third musketeer and fellow bridesmaid, our friend Cydni. We arrived at her parents' apartment, inhaled a wonderfully prepared dinner, and then went straight to bed.

Tuesday consisted of meeting the entire Hofacker family- Mark (yeah, I had only met him once prior via Skype!), his parents, his brother Peter, his sister Rachel and her husband Andrew. The remainder of the day was spent shopping for various needed items, trying on bridesmaid shoes and dresses, and eating dim sum. In the evening we had a large family meal, with all the above mentioned people, as well as Vani's grandmother Popo, her old nanny Manette, and her cousin/"sister"/maid of honor, Crystal. Party of 14!

Wednesday was when the fun began. The group walked through Sha Tin to the Ten Thousand Buddha Temple, which very much reminded me of my travels in Southeast Asia. Lunch was hosted at a floating restaurant on the river, with delicious sea food and Thai soup dishes. In the afternoon, the younger crew, now joined by Mark's friend and groomsmen, Nithin, ventured to the markets for a taste of Asian haggling. We finally escaped the hot, humid air by rejoining the adults for a Japanese sashimi and sushi feast. And the day wasn't done yet; those of us who were brave enough headed downtown for a club opening party. When we grew tired of the overly loud music and over crowded space, we found an empty karaoke lounge, ordered a bottle of whiskey and let the tunes start flowing. We played dice and beer pong, and sang and drank the night away.

Thursday followed in similar fashion, with an early morning group outing to The Peak. We took the historic tram up a mountain to the highest 360 degree viewpoint in Hong Kong. I was blown away by the spectacular scenes of city bordered by mountains, covered in the most perfect, text-book cumulus clouds I've ever seen. When we had taken every picture possible, we took taxis down to the other side of the island to an area called Stanley for lunch at a German restaurant overlooking the beach. In the afternoon, we went to the church to rehearse the ceremony briefly, before moving on to the hotel for a welcome dinner. The evening started with 2-for-1 cocktails at their top floor bar, and continued into a 7-course dinner with unlimited wine refills. Two Westover friends, Audrey and Amanda, finally arrived, and then the evening became one of reminiscing and laughter. Of course after dinner the "kids" were not done celebrating, so we moved our rowdiness to a hookah bar and spent a few more hours enjoying the hot summer night.

Friday was recovery day. The week had been non-stop up to this point, and now it was time to just recharge before the big day. Cydni and I spent most of the day at the apartment while the wedding families were out finishing up last minute errands. We had dinner at a seafood place across the street with Vani, her parents, her cousin/"brother" Jeffrey, and his mother (Vani's aunt). We bought some ice cream, vegged out on the couch, and went to bed at a decent hour, for the first and only time this trip.

Saturday: WEDDING DAY. The morning began at 6:30 AM with breakfast. At 7:00 the make-up artists arrived to primp Vani, Cydni, Crystal, and I, piling on more make-up then I've probably ever worn in my life combined. But the end result was that I looked like a Disney princess (specifically Elsa from Frozen). Promptly at 8:00 the camera crew arrived and began to document every second of everyone's day, and shortly after close family joined the already crammed apartment. Around 9:00 Jeffrey, Mark, and the groomsmen arrived to, um, "take" Vanessa from her room. In Chinese weddings, the bridesmaids challenge the groomsmen to a series of games before the groom is allowed to see his bride (I imagine the origin of this tradition was much less fun and amicable than it is now played out...). So we made Mark shoot a ball into a hoop, had the boys walk across the torturous Chinese foot massage bed, challenged them to complete a crossword puzzle about Vani, and laughed as they attempted compromising yoga poses. Not to our surprise, Mark succeeded valiantly, and with some final bribing from the groomsmen, Mark was allowed to read his love poem and woo Vani to come out of her room. Dressed in traditional gown, the bride was glowing with happiness. The tea ceremony commenced, with Mark and Vanessa kneeling in front of her parents on the couch, offering tea in exchange for the blessing to be married. This was very emotional, as it is officially her mother and father "giving her away". Tears aside, the ceremony continued with other aunts and uncles, and even Popo, giving Mark and Van their blessing. After this was done we were all quickly shuttled over the Mark's hotel, for the ceremony to be repeated with his parents and brother. From the hotel it was a rush off to lunch, where we scarfed dim sum and then just as quickly were whisked away to the church. Guests began to arrive and Vani began to panic as we realized the bouquets for the flower girls and bridesmaids had been forgotten back at the hotel. While she changed into her gown, the rest of set up and ushered guests. Luckily someone from the hotel arrived with the missing bouquets and without skipping a beat, we were off down the aisle. The ring bearers took the lead, followed by the flower girls, the youngest of whom just couldn't handle the pressure and broke down in tears half way through. We ushered her along and all of us made it to our pews in time to see Vanessa being walked down the aisle by her father. It was a catholic service (no mass), short and sweet and full of googly, love-filled eyes from both Mark and Vani. At the end of the service the newly betrothed Hofackers lead us outside to take pictures in the now-scorching afternoon sunlight. When we felt like out faces had been significantly melted off and everyone had gotten that caught on film, we were shuttled back to the hotel for the reception. Cocktail hour began at 5, and the bridal party got another make-up touch up to undo the mess caused by all the sweating. Our Korean friends Sunny and Annie had flown over for the service and we finally got a chance to catch up with them. Wine was flowing, cameras were snapping, and everyone was having a wonderful time. At 8 PM the doors opened to the grand ballroom, decorated like a gala from the 1920's. Guests took the assigned seats, the newly-weds toasted us, and then the 11 course meal commenced. The subsequent 4 hours were full of toasts, videos, food, dances, and drinks. There was laughter, cheers, and tears and everything in between. Finally the hotel staff began to clear us out and guests said their goodbyes. The bride and groom retreated to their suite and the parents headed home in exhaustion, but a few of us brave ones decided the night was still young and tried our hand at a night club. So we danced and sang and had general shenanigans until we returned to our homes and finally laid down at 4:30 AM. Longest day ever.

Sunday, despite the grogginess and hangover, was my favorite day of the whole trip. Once everyone was awake and alive after the wedding madness, the group went out for a delicious Thai lunch. Then the youngens walked to the harbor and caught the high speed ferry to a nearby island called Cheung Chau. The streets were lined with small, market-style shops bearing racks of t-shirts and key chains. We bought beers at 711 and walked amid the shops and stalls selling an assortment of fresh, live seafood. The adults joined us just in time for a lovely stroll along the beach, where hundreds of sea urchins were washed up in the tide. As the sun was setting we purchased some fish from one of the stands and sat on the patio at a restaurant. They cooked up our market purchases and we feasted in mantis shrimp, razor clams, and grouper. It was our final night together, so we ate, and toasted, and took photos and relished in the afterglow of an excellent week. All too soon I was back in California, missing my little Hong Kong family. But it was an unforgettable trip and I am thrilled to congratulate Mark and Vanessa on their new life together.



More to come soon!

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Photos

Japanese dinner
Octopus, anyone?

The bridesmaids
"Go team bridesmaids!"