The Wedding

After months of planning and prepping, Huy and I finally wedded in the presence of many dear family members and friends on July 12, 2009 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Although we registered with the Vietnamese court house in January of 2008, and have since been legally husband and wife, we waited until the summer of 2009 to hold our wedding reception as we were both so occupied with graduate school that little time was left for other endeavors. Plus, being a perfectionist as I am, I wanted to have the time to heed to every little details of the wedding to ensure that this once in a lifetime event is celebrated with style and elegance. While respecting the traditional Vietnamese wedding elements, I'd like to fuse them with modern flavors. After all, I have lived in the U.S. long enough to be mesmerized by the American weddings, which typically showcase romance in a very classy way. On top of all this, I also wanted to be certain that luxury doesn't compromise affordability and stick to our modest budget.

Before flying home, we set out on a beautiful Saturday morning of June to take some engagement photos with Jen Ing, an aspiring Boston-based wedding photographer. I was greatly satisfied with the quality of 100+ photos we received. Through the magic of Jen's photo editing and retouching, Huy and I looked much more gorgeous and polished. Here are some of my favorite shots from the session:



















Back home in Hanoi, the Sofitel Plaza Hotel, the striking landmark between the West Lake and the Red River, set the scene for our mid-summer wedding. We selected this hotel as we were both impressed by the tasteful decor of the lobby and the main function room (where the reception would be held), the newly renovated room for wedding couple which offers a panoramic view of the city, and the professional manner of the hotel's wedding coordinator. It didn't take us long to finalize all the details of the wedding banquet, from floral arrangements, menu, drinks, to entertainment options, since the hotel staff was very accommodating towards our requests and efficient in executing them.

On the wedding day, a day that was supposed to be propitious (or so the fortune teller said), the weather was not at all cooperative. A major tropical storm was sweeping through Hanoi, bringing in heavy rain and thunders. Yet, for me, the wedding could not have been more perfect. It was a joyful celebration filled with exuberant love. Despite the intermittent rain coupled with extreme humidity that could have ruined it all, our mood or our guests' weren't affected even a tiny bit.

The wedding day started with Huy and his close family paying a visit to my home to ask my parents for my hand in marriage. After the most senior person from the two sides made their speeches, I (now already in my Casablanca wedding gown, 10-inch heel and tons of make up) made my debut appearance to greet the guests. We then walked to the altar, burned incense and prayed for blessing from our ancestors and household god(s). Next, Huy and I, together with our families and relatives, hopped on several vehicles to go back to his house for a similar ceremony. When all was finished, we traveled to the reception site.

At the hotel reception hall, there was another short ceremony before dinner was served. The MC introduced the parents, the bride and the groom and we all walked up the stage to exchange rings, cut the wedding cake, open the champagne bottle to pour down a tower of glasses and propose a toast to our guests. Although Huy and I have had our marriage certificate for a while, participating in all the wedding rituals still managed to touch my heart deeply. The solemnity and sacredness of that moment when we kissed in each other on stage, and slid the rings into each other's fingers were soothing, and somehow powerful. In my humble opinion, celebrating the union of two people under the witness of loved ones is what makes the marriage official! And it is the memory of the happenings and emotions of that day that you will hold dearly for a lifetime, not the signing in a piece of paper!

I'm so grateful to the Sammedia team for creating this video of our wedding photos. I hope you will enjoy it as much as we do!