I’m pretty sure that everyone who has gotten married, or is planning a wedding, will remember at least one incident about the whole process which makes for a funny, or nightmare-ish, conversation starter. Even celebrities like Hilary Duff isn’t spared – though she is the only celebrity I know who talks about her nightmare before her wedding.
Neither was I.
I remember a couple of incidences before Sean and I exchanged our vows… in Chinese! No, we didn’t write our vows in Chinese. In fact, we didn’t write any. Haha. We just didn’t know that our Justice of Peace (JOP) speaks only Chinese. Yup, this was one of the ‘surprises’ we had. Haha.
But let’s start from the top, shall we?
Upon arrival at our wedding reception venue, the first thing that caught my eyes and had me annoyed was the misspelling of my name at the entrance. Instead of ‘Mabel’, it was spelt ‘Mable’. This was quickly rectified, thankfully.
Following that, the JOP arrived and he asked to check all our documents before commencing our wedding solemnization. This was when I realized that I didn’t have my identification card on me! I had left the house with no personal belongings other than a mobile phone. I had left everything at home cos, well, Sean’s around so I wouldn’t need any of my cash or cards… or so I thought.
I obviously panicked. I kept thinking we wouldn’t be able to get married unless someone drives me home to pick it up. That is until the JOP said, “As long as the groom is sure that the person he is marrying today is the correct lady, we can proceed.” This was also when we realize that our JOP could only speak Chinese, and told us that the ceremony will be held in Chinese! I love my Chinese dramas, but I never thought I would be saying “我愿意” (that’s ‘I do’ in Chinese) instead of just plain ol’ English “I do” at my own wedding!
Then came the next bummer.
See my face? I was absolutely annoyed that the JOP kept pronouncing my name, in Chinese, wrong! Before the ceremony, both Sean and I kept correcting him, but when it came to the actual ceremony, he mispronounced it again. I even tried to correct him mid-way, hoping he’ll repeat, but no. He just went on and continued to say another woman’s name for the rest of he ceremony.
My mom had commented when she saw the photos then, “I’ve never seen a bride with such a ‘black’ face at her own wedding!” Haha!
All these ‘hiccups’ aside, we managed to have a beautiful wedding just before sunset, by the beach. It never even occurred to me that we had a wedding by the beach, until someone pointed it out like a year or two after the wedding. Haha! We might have done more for the wedding, had we realize that sooner – like before the wedding. But then again, maybe not. I kind of like the laid-back and simplicity of it all. Hehe.
We did spice up our wedding a little with a small DIY decoration for our car, which turned out much smaller than we expected, and DIY honey sticks for wedding favors! Haha!
Have you had such dramatic incidences that happened prior to exchanging your vows with your spouse? From wedding planning to actual day, do share all the memorable ‘hiccups’ which you will never, ever forget by joining this linky!
wahaha…sorry but i think the JOP very kuku leh!!! after correction still not pronouncing properly!! in the first place, didn’t u guys check with him on whether he was able to do the whole thing in English?
To be honest, we didn’t even know who the JOP was until the day of the wedding! He was recommended by my mom’s friend so we kind of just left it as ‘settled’, cos friend recommend means good, right? Hahaha! If I remember correctly, my mother was rather shocked herself! Haha.