Wedding – Day 3
Today was the final day of the wedding celebrations and quieter than yesterday with just one formal event in the evening. The rest of the day was for recovering, relaxing, and preparing to depart tomorrow.
It was near midnight when we got to bed last night and we slept a bit late. I did wake at 6:00 am but rolled over and the next I knew it was 7:40 am. Oddly there was a call from resort staff at 8:00 am to tell us breakfast was on. We were there soon enough but not immediately.
After breakfast we relaxed in our room. I worked on photos and Majella laid out and ironed clothing for the reception. I had taken about 300 photos across the ceremonies yesterday but there were many near duplicates and photos of the backs of photographers or others. It took some time to sort through and reduce the total to about 80 that are worth keeping.
The major event today was to be the reception at 6:30 pm but there was a ‘pool party’ listed for 11:00 am. Majella was keen to swim and was ready to go on time. I decided not to swim since the day was not hot enough to need cooling beyond sitting in the shade. There were some others in the pool and Majella got in but complained of cold until she adjusted and then enjoyed it. I sat and minded her things but was needed to run errands like getting a funny hat and mask for her and her swimming companion.
There were tables and chairs set in a treed area beyond the pool and the caterers set up there for lunch. After a bit more than an hour in the water, Majella emerged. When she had dried off we found seats in the back area. The Hazzards joined us there and we chatted until lunch was ready and then some more over lunch which was a buffet with a variety of dishes. Some were the same as we had eaten over the past couple of days but there were some we had not seen before. It was all tasty and there were enough without real heat to satisfy most palates. Those with a real aversion to spice could settle for salad vegetables and ice cream.
After lunch we returned to our room to relax some more. Majella went out around 3:00 pm to have her sari for tonight wrapped and returned to watch some television. She was lucky to find Big Bang Theory in English to entertain her while we waited.
A little before 6:00 pm there was a WhatsApp message from Laura about high tea by the infinity pool. I dressed and we went down, missed the tea, but chatted to a few people for a while until we noticed that people seemed to be gathering in the event space nearby.
They really must be confident of the weather in this part of the world. As for all the other ceremonies, the reception was held outdoors. With a 6:30 pm start, it was getting dark so there was no need of protection from the sun and the only things above us were a few strings of lights. There was a long table up front backed by lighted floral decorations with grand chandeliers. Guests were sat at round tables arranged across the lawn.
We wandered in, found our names on the seating board, secured seats with a view at our table, and sat down to wait. Lyn, Laura’s friend from the Gold Coast, soon joined us. Near the entrance there was a photo booth so we wandered across there and had a photo taken.
When we returned to our table the first of the other guests at the table, Anju Patel, was there and introduced herself. She was a family connection and lived in the UK. The remaining guests at our table were her two sons and the wife of one with their son and daughter. We had some interesting conversation about what they did in the UK and some of their and our experiences.
Sometime after 7:00 pm John and Shruti arrived. Their entrance was accompanied by fireworks. Once up front they cut the cake and took their seats.
Dinner was served at the tables. It began with mock-tails, followed by appetisers, soup, salad, mains and dessert. There were 3 different appetisers, a choice of soups, two salads, small portions of three items plus dhal and rice for mains, and trifle, cheesecake, and ice cream for dessert. It was all well presented and tasty and none of it was overly hot and spicy. As it had been for the whole three days, there was not a shred of meat in the food and not a drop of alcohol in the drinks. They were not missed.
After the first couple of courses had been served the first round of speeches began. Shruti’s father spoke first, followed by Laura, and the bridesmaids. The second round after the balance of the meal included Clancy as best man and John. Toasts were made with water. All of the speeches were heartfelt and painted a picture of a couple with great talent, generous personalities, and love for each other and family. Although Pat, John’s father, died in 2009 his presence was very evident in the speeches from Laura and John and the stories Clancy told of John’s adventures were more evidence of Pat’s love of life and influence on John.
With the speeches over it was time for dancing beginning with the couple dance and going on until we left as it was all winding down around 11:00 pm. In the meantime those of the Australians still standing performed an encore of our hit dance routine. Shruti’s US cousins also obliged with an encore of their performance which was much more complex than ours.
It was a great night to end three days of wedding celebration.
