Great News!

A heavy work-load and moving into a new apartment have seriously tapped my energy and desire to blog. I haven't been inspired to take many photos or document my adventures lately. That changed this past weekend.

Catherine got an email from a good friend back home. Attached to the message was a copy of the paperwork verifying her single status. Defying the odds, her friend managed to score the official document from the Burmese government that certifies she is eligible to marry here in Taiwan. The biggest hurdle to our future together is behind us...phew!!

The arrival of the paperwork has inspired Catherine to start thinking about the details of our wedding. We have already had a few less-than-fun discussions about wedding photos. The whole thing is a racket as far as I am concerned, but she is pretty excited about it. My mother told me many years ago that a wedding is the woman's day and don't question her decisions or motives if you want to have any peace...excellent advice. I am sure we will come to some sort of compromise, painfully...lol.

Since we don't plan on having a reception/party, the honeymoon is what we are going to concentrate on. We need to come up with a really cool trip that isn't going to cost a fortune. Any ideas out there? I would appreciate any recommendations you folks might have for a romantic getaway on a budget.

Wish us luck with the remaining details/hurdles and stay tuned for updates on our progress.

Queenie & Jerry's Big Day

Saturday night my friends Queenie and Jerry got married. Catherine and I were so happy to get a chance to celebrate with them. The party was a lot of fun. It also gave me a chance to see some folks from my old school...I miss them terribly. Queenie looked incredible, she is a beautiful woman. It was my first wedding here, so it was an opportunity to experience a wedding Taiwanese-style.

Jerry is my bosses brother and Queenie is a teacher at the Shulin school. Queenie has been teaching for Carol for quite a few years.

Unlike in the west, weddings are not formal occasions. Some folks were dressed to the hilt, others not so much.

The reception is, essentially, a dinner party. There isn't a DJ, band or dancing, just dinner music playing in the background. It is not the raucous affair that many western wedding receptions tend to be. There was alcohol, but not consumed at the level that I have seen folks drink at weddings in the U.S.

One aspect I found curious is the parade of dresses. The bride changes into different gowns 3 or 4 times throughout the evening. I guess it's an opportunity to take more photos.

My boss Carol and her cute-as-a-button daughter. I believe her daughter's name is Jeannie, but I'm not sure...I'm a guy, I forget those kinds of things!

The food was top-notch. Sadly, most of it was seafood. I don't eat fish so I was left twiddling my chopsticks for a good portion of the dinner. I did really enjoy the Haagen Dazs ice cream for dessert!

I managed to spend some time with a bunch of the teachers from Shulin, they are a great group. It was awesome to see them. The women in the Shulin school helped me become the teacher I am, really boosted my self-confidence.

Carrie & Catherine after the big affair. These two ladies can light up a room. We were mulling around waiting for everyone to finish up so we could head over to the KTV joint (more on KTV in a future post).

Big John and Gavin. Gavin is one of the coolest guys on the planet. He is Carol's husband.

The bride and groom with their parents. This is the part of the celebration where they make the marriage official. The parents make the pact official and sign the relevant documents...I guess this description doesn't exactly reek of romance...sorry, I am tired...lol.

Here they are playing one of the silly games that's part of a typical wedding here. The groom is blindfolded and he must find his bride by only touching the hands of all the folks on the stage...Jerry didn't do so well, he thought my friend Sandy was Queenie...oops!

Another silly game. This one involved the groom slinging his "hammer" into the brides "tambourine". Pretty saucy!

Finally, I couldn't resist added this photo to the group. Check out the guy on the left dashing for the bouquet! I'm certain he is destined to make a lovely bride in the near future...

The wedding proved to be another great cultural experience for me. It's really fun to get a chance to witness this stuff. I am a lucky guy...I love my work, have wonderful friends, live in a fascinating part of the world and have an extraordinary woman in my life. I am thankful every day for these things.