Weddings are not for the poor

Planning for her own wedding has made my Goddess realise that weddings (she's referring to the conventional and traditional types with the take bridal shots, 过大礼，嫁妆，安床，接新娘 followed by banquet dinner at a good hotel and ending off with a honeymoon) are not meant for those who are poor.

With inflation, prices of everything is rising. Hotels are increasing their rates at an average of $50 per table per year, some even more. My Goddess booked her hotel in end 2009. Now bookings for the same place has increased to about $400 more per table. Of course a lot of things are thrown in the package to make the deal worth it - tie ups with invite card designer, live band, better menu, hagen daaz ice cream etc. But are all these really needed? I'd rather do without these and get a cheaper rate.

Prices of gold are increasing like mad if you intend to follow the customs of 嫁妆 and 四点金.

Not to mention the ridiculously sky high property prices that you'll spend the rest of your life paying off the loan of.

So unless:
1. You are born in a rich family
2. You will be married into a rich family
3. You stay at your in-laws place after marriage
4. You skip all the traditions and customs and just have a ROM

Then you won't be able to have the typical wedding that costs at least $30k, and now even more, with the price hikes.

So for those who are thinking of getting married, start locking in the prices before they start rising further and good luck!

Busy wedding prep weekend

This weekend, or rather, these 2 weekends have been super duper busy for my Goddess and the Horny Devil.

With only 6 weeks left, they still had a few things not completed for their wedding. So it's pia time for them!!

To start the weekend of madness on a good note, they had a good brunch at Cedele!