We spent the week in Kota Kinabalu in Borneo, an island in Malaysia, to attend a niece's wedding. This phenomenon of destination weddings, which started decades ago in other parts of the world has finally descended upon the Philippines. Being the great copy cats and innovators that we are, we have raised the bar up to a grander scale. Years ago, at the weddings of several friends based in the U.S. who had opted to celebrate in exotic locations, the number of guests were kept to a manageable minimum for logistical reasons. This recent one in Kota Kinabalu had over 200 guests fly in from Manila, New York, London, Milan, and China.
A professional team of wedding planners had to be on hand to organize the weekend event--from the Despedida de Soltera dinner on the eve of the ceremony to the ceremony itself the next day. You couldn't pay me to do that job; breaking up the guests huddled in conversation and enjoining them to start with the buffet dinner was like splitting the atom. But because the organizers were efficient and extremely patient, all went well.
Everyone was billeted at the Shangri-La Rasa Ria resort, which speaks tons about the aesthetic quality and level of service that the accomodations provided. The ceremony was held on top of a bluff overlooking the ocean, under a nipa-roofed gazebo just before sunset. All the elements that make a perfect outdoor wedding--the balmy weather, the decor, the music courtesy of a band flown in from Manila, the dresses of the entourage, the stunning bride in one of the prettiest wedding gowns I've ever seen and her beaming groom--were present and harmoniously blended together.
The setting was obviously a lead character in the wedding, which could have been just like any other grand celebration had it been held in one of the posh hotels of Metro Manila. But the view of the ocean, the sound of the surf coming in, the heat of the sinking sun that extracted a drop or two of sweat from everyone, and the breeze that tossed the guests' hair and dresses lent a softness and an informality to the occasion. Everything was simply breath-taking.
The bride seemed to have floated through the center aisle and as the last of the sun's rays filtered through the sheerest of bridal veils that fell from her crown onto the floor, we all caught a glimpse of a faint smile that slightly parted her lips when she caught sight of the groom. He, as well, seemed transported onto another dimension--dreamy, surreal, sublime. In that brief, magical moment, I may have grasped what it is that we all labor to find in our short, harried lives.
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