Browse Category: weddings

Tastes like feet!!

We just got back from our trip up north late last night. We flew up on Saturday morning and Victor and Susie picked us up. We got to stay at their new apartment this weekend, which is pretty cool and right by the water! They have a view of the bay and the Coke bottle at PacBell Park. Since the wedding in Napa wasn’t going to start until 5:30, we went for a 5-mile run along Embarcadero. Susie, Vyl, and Bang joined us and it was really fun! We all started in front the the apartment and Jes and I ran all the way to the end of Fisherman’s Wharf (2.5 miles) and turned around. Susie, Vyl, and Bang turned around at the beginning of Fisherman’s Wharf and completed 4 miles total.
The wedding was for Albert, one of Jes’ old co-workers, who was marrying a girl he met in Business School last year. I always wondered what a Napa wedding would be like and it was cool. The wedding took place at Nicholson Ranch in Sonoma. We were about 90 mins late due to traffic all over the place. Apparently there was a NASCAR event also in Sonoma that weekend. The funny part is that we didn’t miss much since the ceremony lasted for a whoppin’ 10 minutes!! Jes got to hang out with his old buddies from his dot-com days and it was funny seeing him interact with them again. Unlike his quiet, laid-back self, he was the leader of the pack –instigating all the hijinx and being the center of attention.
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On Sunday, we went back up to Napa for a day of wine tasting. Vyl planned a whole itinerary of events for us…it was sweet. First stop was Nickel & Nickel where we had to have an appointment. It was like going to someone’s house, sitting in their dining room, and tasting wine with a bunch of friends. There were 7 of us: Vyl, Bang, Susie, Victor, Michelle, Jes, and me. There was also one other couple from Florida and of course, the hostess. We tasted 5 different single vineyard wines and they were all good. It was a really fun tasting…very different from past experiences. We had a good time laughing as we swirled our glasses. In fact, we were such a fun crowd that morning that they actually comped us the $30/person tasting!! The next stop was Rombauer where we tried to buy a really yummy Chardonnay but they sold out. Lunch was a picnic at V. Sattui and then we were off to Cakebread. The wines there weren’t very impressive and most of them, as Vyl likes to say, “taste[d] like feet”. I think all the yummy stuff we tasted this morning at Nickel & Nickel really set some high expectations for all of us and set us up for disappointment for the rest of the day. We actually ended up back at N&N to buy some of their wine. The day and weekend ended with some outlet shopping and a flight back to LA.

Congratulations to Ti and Thilan!!

On Saturday, Ti and Thilan got married. They had a very traditional Catholic ceremony followed by a Chinese-style banquet with all the trimmings. It also was heartwarming to see two families that I’ve known for 15 years come together. The weekend itself was jam-packed with activities. Yong and Helen stayed with us. We had dinner and drinks in Orange County on Friday night with old friends. The wedding afternoon involved hurrying to the church (again), hanging out at my parents’ house to kill time before dinner, and lots of eating and drinking at the banquet. There were some interesting moments involving Victor picking on little kids, Huy and Dayantha having to don traditional Vietnamese clothing, and taking home leftover champagne and Coke. Ti and Thilan looked so happy and we all had a great time celebrating with them.

shutterbug is feeling antsy

Last weekend my digital camera gave up on me. I bought it back in 2003 and almost 2 years later, the autofocus is no longer working. Is the life of a camera that short or did I just kill it by using it so much? Anyway, with 2 weddings and plans to go up to Napa this month, I’ve been feeling really antsy this week. I am back to my trusty 35mm SLR. I love my Nikon but there’s just something about digital photos that I’ve become fond of. Perhaps it’s the instant gratification of seeing your photos right away and maybe it’s the flexibility of taking whatever you want whenever. All I know is that I’m itching for a new camera and there are so many options! What is a shutterbug to do?
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Speaking of weddings, we have Ti and Thilan’s this Saturday. People from all over are flying into town and we get to all hang out again. What’s special about this one is that Dayantha’s younger brother is marrying Huy’s younger sister…how sweet. It’s going to be huge considering both sides have lots of family and friends. It’ll also be interesting to see how they mesh Vietnamese, Sri Lankan, and Catholic cultures into one big celebration. Stay tuned…

More jellybeans please.

This past weekend in San Jose was pretty crazy. First of all, traveling with the family is pretty interesting. I guess I’ve been traveling so much lately that I forgot how “exciting” it can be for most people to fly on a plane. It was Ishya and Billy’s wedding weekend and boy…it really did take up the whole weekend. The wedding was on Saturday morning. There was a Thai ceremony on Sunday morning and a Chinese banquet on Sunday night. We literally took the last flight back to LAX last night and I didn’t get home until 2am this morning. Whew!! Ishya looked beautiful and Billy was very emotional. The girls were dressed in cranberry red, lunch consisted of filet and shrimp, and we had enough jellybeans to last the rest of the year. Overall, it was a very organized affair and us riff-raffs even got to help out at the sign-in table.

Congrats to the Masayas!

Weekend recap: Took Yong and Helen to K-town…Helen got her make-up and Jes bought another travel bag. I got some cute hairpins (thanks Helen!). Rehearsal and dinner was later in the evening – lots of Korean and Filipino food…yum. Met up with everyone else at Friday’s, the old stand-by. Yoon came in on Friday morning, everyone else came in Friday evening. Saturday was Victor and Susie’s wedding day! Jen and Kevin came in Saturday morning and we all got ready here at the house. The wedding was beautiful and the reception was a hoot. Lots of alcohol, food, and dancing. It felt like a big reunion. Holly and I got a bit tipsy but managed not to pass out in the bathroom. CONGRATULATIONS, VICTOR AND SUSIE!!

I got my “R”!

So, I passed! Yup, the big envelope came in the mail on April 1st and I got my “R”! I can’t describe how nice it was to sign “OTR” for the first time.

Wedding planning is still going…I bought the dress, chose a photographer, and have started interviewing florists.

Last weekend, I went to Napa with Jes and we had such a good time. It was the first time that we’ve gone on our own and it was nice to be able to get lost and not care, sit for as long as we wanted without an agenda, taste wine and enjoy each other’s company, and drive along the windy paths in our new RSX. The only drawback was how much harder it was to go home and get back to work on Monday.