Two Weddings.
Saturday, July 4, 2009, 04:08 p.m. #1611.



Attended a cousin's wedding two weeks ago. He was getting married for the second time, and it was a rather small, cosy affair. He drove the bridal car himself, and there were no best man, bridesmaid or "brothers and sisters". The dinner tables were reserved only a month ago, and he didn't even get a photographer for the event! As someone who loves taking snapshots, I naturally took up the role of the photographer. While it was a rather quiet wedding that didn't have any grand entrances and pompous displays, I was envious of how the couple looked so loving and sweet together. And seriously, that is all that matters - that they are happy together.



Attended an Indian wedding at the Central Sikh Temple last week. Didn't know that I had to cover my hair - one of the people at the temple gave me a handkerchief, and the girls enthusiastically helped me tie it around my head, bandana-style. They said I looked really handsome with that "bandana", but I think I looked like a bandit.



Anyway the temple was really beautiful. I have passed by the temple several times, but I never knew that there's a pool on the rooftop!



The wedding ceremony was also quite different from the other Indian wedding which I attended one month ago. While that one felt really happy and festive, this one felt stately, solemn and religious. The men and the ladies had to use different stairways, and we had to sit on different sides of the ceremonial hall. While the side with the ladies was a sea of colors with their vibrantly-colored saris and headscarfs, the men's side looked really dull in comparison. Nice experience.

The Week that Felt Like a Year.
Saturday, July 4, 2009, 03:04 p.m. #1610.

It's been such a long while since I last blogged. The June holidays have slipped by so quickly that I hardly felt much of it. Week 1 was packed with courses and conferences. Week 2 was filled with revision lessons with my graduating classes. Weeks 3 and 4 were spent on urgent meetings (thanks to H1N1) and setting of exam papers.

So the new term started, and each day started earlier than usual (we had to report to school by 6.45 a.m. - thanks to H1N1 again). And the days were made longer and drearier with my hospitalised mum (hence the additional housechores), the after-school lab sessions and small-group meetings (yep, no more than 10 people can gather).

Thankful that my mum is out now, and everything seems to have become more bearable by the end of the week. I am sure next week will be better.