Saturday - The Big Day

As my time in Hong Kong progressed, so my memory fades………perhaps something to do with the Hong Kong tradition of incessant beer drinking. It goes something like this…….got lost trying to find Mark’s apartment, put on the kilt and associated paraphernalia, ferry over (with beer) to central Hong Kong, beers in The Captain’s Bar of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel (very nice hotel!), wedding ceremony, Pier 7 again for the first reception, return to Mui Wo for the second reception at the Turkish restaurant.

A busy day but nice to see all attendees in their finery. Mark had some clothing issues that saw him borrowing my kilt shoes. There was no solution however to his three-quarter length kilt socks that had shrunk in the wash. The socks provided us all with plenty of chuckles and Foggo, Mark’s friend, quipped that it appeared Mark has picked his kilt up from a cosplay shop.

The ceremony itself was brief and businesslike as there are fixed slots for couples to tie the knot. Despite her best efforts, Grace (the bride to be) failed to be fashionable late and was just on time. It was just as well she made it as the next available slot would have been 6 weeks later. Phew!

I think I have written enough about the wedding day itself – I will let the pictures do the rest of the talking. The highlight of the day for me was being ambushed by 4 slinky Chinese bridesmaids from another wedding party, all wishing to get a photo with me in my kilt. I liked.

Obviously, a fantastic day was had by all but God only knows how many beers were drank that day. And we still had champagne lunch to follow the next day...watch this space.

Wedding - Megu and Kazu

We all had a great time at the wedding of Kazu and Megumi yesterday (Saturday the 13th December). Megumi has been a close friend of Yuki for many years and I met her for the first time about 11 years ago. Every time I go to a wedding in Japan, I seem to enjoy them more and more.

This wedding like others before them, was organised to perfection. We were all impressed with how professionally things were done and the final result was very classy. It must have cost a small fortune. It was held at a building called Celes which specialises in staging both the wedding ceremony and the post wedding party. Celes specialises in European style weddings and the facade of the building is supposedly modeled on a famous church in Rome.

We were all looking forward to the wedding and it was nice to have an excuse to dust down the kilt and head out to a special occasion.

After waiting for a short time in the foyer of the building, we were all ushered into the lifts and up to the 7th floor where the chapel is located. The chapel is very tastefully done and could easily have passed for a quaint village church in Scotland. The groom walked down the aisle in a white suit looking very serious and Megumi soon followed on the arm of her father to the tune of Here Comes the Bride. She also looked very businesslike and serious - every time I have seen her in the past, she was always laughing and joking but I guess she was making a special effort to remain composed on her big day.




UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Sorry, but it is Sunday night and I have to wake up at 5.30am tomorrow so I can't complete the blog tonight. Here are a few more pictures - I'll try and finish this update sometime during the week.

Thanks
Kane

The Campbell Wedding

One of the many highlights of our trip to Scotland was seeing Graeme Campbell (Grambo), my friend from Aberdeen University, getting married. Not only was I looking forward to the nuptials and associated events, but I was also looking forward to meeting up with my other friends from university. I cannot believe that we all graduated 12 years ago......sorry for the cliche, but time flies (when you're having fun).

The choice of wedding present was slowly torturing me in the run up to the wedding. I always attempt to buy presents from my friend from Skye called Len who owns his own pottery called Crieff Ceramics. Unfortunately, I have been so busy that I never had the chance to drop by, say "Hi", and then buy one of his creations. He really needs to embrace the computer age and have some rudimentary means of viewing products and then ordering online.

As Crieff Ceramics was unachievable, I was faced with the dilemma of buying Grambo and Mandy vouchers from John Lewis or thinking of something else. I chose the 'thinking of something else' option and ended up buying a print from a local artist in Skye called Tommy MacKenzie. Although I do not like to brag, it turned out to be an inspired choice and seemed to go down very well with the married couple. Grambo is a bit of an outdoors type and loves nothing better than scrambling over Scottish mountains or rambling through Scottish glens. Therefore, the idea of buying a print from a Skye artist gathered momentum. Once in Tommy MacKenzie's studio, the dilemma was which picture to select. I settled on a print of the Old Man of Storr, a prominent Skye landmark about which Grambo jokingly wrote a poem on a dark winter Aberdeen evening in 1994. It is titled 'The Old Man of Storr' and reads ;

Oh ye big black rock
Standing tall you do not talk
From Portree you catch the eye
And unlike me you'll never die
Like MacLeod who once stood tall
I hope you will never fall
But big black rock I hope you stay
From dusk to dawn for eternity
I printed off a copy of the poem and stuck it on the back of picture with a small message from Yuki, Clara, and myself. Grambo appeared to be really happy with it and I hope it will grace the wall of their house for years to come.

Unfortunately, I did not take a photo of the picture that I gave to Grambo and Mandy so I have had to use a photograph that I took of the Old Man of Storr the week we arrived in Scotland. Beautiful!

When I arrived at the Newton Hotel in Nairn for the wedding reception and looked at the table plan, it became evident that the picture was even more appropriate. Grambo and Mandy had named each table after a Scottish mountain or region. I think one table was called Cairngorm, another Quirang. The top table where the bride and groom sat was called The Storr. When I saw that, I knew my wedding present was a masterstroke and that has left a smile on my face for the past week.

Needless to say, the whole day was fantastic. Mandy and Grambo seem to be the perfect match and perfect companions for each other. The food at the wedding reception was spot on, and I really enjoyed the Pimms which was served upon arrival at the hotel. I especially enjoyed seeing 'The Posse' again.BACK : Alan Thomson, Graeme Campbell (groom), Fergus Thomson.
FRONT : Graeme Glover (Best Man), Kane Davidson

The guys in the above photo are friends I made at Aberdeen University. We have all gone our separate ways, but when we meet up, the banter still flows and it becomes easy to see why we are all friends. The banter was extended when Alan and Gillian kindly gave me a lift down to Edinburgh on Sunday morning. Alan seemed to drive at 50mph the whole way, but we eventually arrived unscathed.

A great day and night which allowed me to reabsorb some Scottish culture and catch up with long lost friends. A fuller range of pictures will soon appear on Webshots.

The Nagasaki Wedding

The main reason for our trip to Nagasaki was the marriage of Kentaro (Yuki's brother) to Mika. The wedding took place at the Luke Plaza Hotel. The views from the hotel were lovely. We could see our hotel on the other side of Nagasaki Bay and all the comings and goings of various ships and boats. The weather was also pretty good. I was worried that the temperatures would be too high but it was a pleasant 23C.

The Luke Plaza Hotel must specialise in weddings as we counted about 5 other brides during the course of the day. I decided to keep myself to myself as I did not want to introduce myself to the wrong family.

We all sat around for a while and then headed into a side room where a group photo of the two families was taken. During that time, the families of the bride and groom formally introduced themselves to each other. After that, we were soon directed into the chapel which stood behind the hotel. The chapel looked very nice and had recently been renovated. There was a good selection of kimonos on display and Clara was very proud to wear her dress, along with a necklace and earrings. Joep and I both decided to fly the flag for Scotland and wear the kilt.After the ceremony and photos, we were directed inside for the wedding reception. Everything was done very professionally and seemed quite expensive. As is the case with all Japanese weddings, it was a mix of madcap and emotion. Kenken's friends from university bellowed out good wishes to the happy couple whilst performing an odd looking dancing ritual. On the other end of the scale, the bride and groom thanked their parents for all their care and support over the years. Clara was a little star and behaved very well. I was interested to see her thinking about the events and she became quite tearful at times during the day. I guess she is growing up fast as she was able to fully appreciate the significance of the days events.

My parents seemed to enjoy themselves, even if they were slightly bemused by some of the days events. The wedding finished at around 3pm, so we took the hotel bus back to the New Nagasaki Hotel to unwind. For me, the biggest difference between a Japanese and a Scottish wedding is that in Scotland, the partying lasts until around midnight. In Japan, it always makes me feel a little odd to leave at 3pm in the afternoon, sober and in daylight.

The Wedding

The main reason for my return to Shimogo was to attend the wedding of Fuminori, a former colleague. The wedding was held in a city called Aizu Wakamatsu on Sunday the 2nd of September. I met up with former colleagues from the local government at 10.30am outside the town office. A small bus had been arranged to transport about 10 people to the wedding in Aizu Wakamatsu. As usual, things were organised to perfection. The bus was well stocked with beer, wine, and a selection of snacks. Although I had had a large breakfast shortly before, the thought of another beer at 10.30 in the morning was initially an unappetising prospect. However, I soon got back into the swing of things and even managed a cup of wine before the journey to Aizu Wakamatsu had come to an end.

Once we arrived at the wedding chapel, I had to rush to get changed into my kilt as the wedding was about to begin. I was then told that the start time had been pushed back by 30 minutes. I have a sneaking suspicion that I was the reason for the delay. I should have changed before I caught the bus but I thought there would be plenty of time before the wedding began. In the end, I managed to put the kilt and accompaniments on, but did not have time to flatten my hair and so spent the whole day looking like I had just woken up.

The ceremony was very similar to a British ceremony. The only difference was that there was a short slide show before it began with pictures of both Fuminori and Chihiro. Once the ceremony had ended, all the guests made their way outside to wait for the couple to descend the steps from the wedding chapel. This was a perfect opportunity to throw some confetti and take a few photographs.
As usual, things ran like clockwork and it was obvious that many people had made a lot of effort to make the day a success. A portrait of the happy couple had been painted, a pamphlet titled 'Fumi' had been produced with a selection of photos and stories about Fuminori and Chihiro, and the local fire brigade (of which Fuminori is a member) put on a comical show for the benefits of the wedding guests. I was surprised when the fire brigade leader made a beeline for my seat during the meal and required me to salute him twice before commencing their routine. He was screaming parade-ground-like in front of me with about 180 celebrants looking on. Thank God I returned his salutes or I got the feeling he would never have left me alone. I always enjoy Japanese weddings as every one is different. British weddings seem stuffy by comparison and they all eventually seem to blend into one. Japanese weddings are always filled with a bit of comedy, and this was no different. I even went to a wedding about 4 years ago in Tokyo where the bride and groom used a light sabre to cut the wedding cake to the Star Wars theme tune playing through massive speakers.

It is usual in Japan for the bride to change into a kimono after the wedding ceremony. The red kimono stood out vividly. The mothers of the bride and groom always wear black kimonos, decorated with a number of traditional Japanese scenes. Very classy.

After the wedding, in true Japanese style, there was a second party. The second party was held in an Italian restaurant, close to where the wedding was held. I had a good laugh catching up with everyone, although by that time, I was feeling quite ropey after 3 days of drinking. I decided to 'decorate' the toilet before heading back to my hotel room at 8pm. Congratulations to Fuminori and Chihiro!!

Scotland - Edinburgh Wedding

The final leg of my holiday in Scotland was the journey to Edinburgh for the wedding of Michael and Louise.

The day before the wedding, I was able to meet Alan Thomson for lunch in Bar 38 on George Street. Alan is a friend that I met at the University of Aberdeen and who I shared a flat with for 3 memorable years (along with Grambo and Glovesy). He is still reet HC and is carving a highly successful career for himself in the Edinburgh legal world.

I also managed to meet up with some old colleagues from Deutsche Bank. They haven't changed. They are still a good laugh to be with and have not lost their taste for alcohol.

Going to the wedding was an excellent chance for me to meet up with my old school friends. We all had a really good time and I haven't laughed so much in a long time.

The ceremony started at the Catholic church at 2pm on Saturday the 21st of October. Before the wedding, lots of us went down to an area called the Grassmarket for a few beers. The weather was so nice that we could sit outside.

The ceremony was pretty good and not as long as I expected. It was great to see how happy Michael and Louise were on their big day. I took a lot of photos and also a video of the proceedings. Unfortunately, the church was a bit dark inside so some of the photos were not very good. I managed to annoy a good deal of people in the church with my video camera - it was making regular beeping noises. For every beep, I received a dirty look.

After the ceremony, we went to another pub for a few more beers before the reception started. The wedding reception was held at one of the best hotels in Edinburgh - the Caledonian Hotel. There were about 180 guests at the reception. The food was fantastic and I can honestly say that I have never tasted better roast lamb in my whole life. I've thought about the lamb every day since the wedding - it was that good!!

After the meal and speeches, the band started to play and finished about 2am. It was nice to hear some traditional Scottish music again and good to see Farquahar and play the fiddle and Archie play the accordian (both friends from the Isle of Skye).

The ceremony, reception with its excellent food and music, and the company of old friends, all made the perfect end to my holiday in Scotland.