A Wedding Amongst the Stars

Being the warden of an HKU residence hall expands your social calendar in ways you might not have expected. Case-in-point: Katherine and I were invited, by the father of the groom (who happens to be a senior alumnus of our hall), to attend a wedding reception and banquet of unimaginable proportions. It took place yesterday evening in one of Victoria Harbour's most recognizable landmarks, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre...

Here Katherine and I were admiring the harbour view on our way up to the Grand Hall (on the top floor, where all the festivities were held).

The reception area was adorned with massive photographic panels showcasing the happy couple in some of their favorite spots around Beijing (where they began their courtship)...


The reception area itself seemed quite large, but it was nothing compared to the banquet hall...

This was taken from the reception area just before we were ushered into the banquet hall. The large wooden panels you see were actually a solid wall when we arrived, but they rotated (like massive, vertical venitian blinds) into this open position to let us know that it was time for the banquet to start. Very much an "ooh" moment.

On the inside we met up with a few hall alumni...


...and thoroughly enjoyed their company. In the background of the second picture above, you'll notice two large (10+ feet tall) video walls. The hall is so massive that there are areas which really can't see the stage clearly, so the video walls were necessary to keep everyone involved.

There were at least 160 tables, each seating 12 people, which means about 2000 guests were invited (of which it was estimated that over 1300 actually came). It was a night that was artfully crafted for the Hong Kong elite, with a line of paparazzi greeting everyone as they walked in (and, yes, that means all the Hong Kong tabloids took pictures of Katherine and I as we strolled together - though we didn't make any of the articles in this morning's news ;>). Entertainment stars, business tycoons, both Hong Kong and mainland Chinese high-ranking government officials...and the two of us. ;> It felt much how I imagine something like the Oscars ceremony feels - larger than life - and we were honored to take part in it.

Midway through the proceedings, the groom put on his own concert (complete with glow sticks and lighters waving in the air), serenading his bride with a famous Cantonese pop ballad...

That's just the kind of night it was. Of course, it also had all the hallmarks of any standard Chinese wedding banquet, like a first course of roast pig...


The smile garnish is a reference to the Cantonese pronunciation of the word "roast", which sounds almost exactly the same as "smile" (but uses a different character). Very cute.

We were there from about 7:30PM until after midnight, and it was an experience we won't soon forget.

A belated Merry Christmas to all of you!