Tag Archives: M from nepaliaustralian

Our Story : Wedding preparations and dramas – Part 37

This is a continuation of my previous posts. Please read the previous posts here.

Once I landed in Nepal, time seemed to just fly and I didn’t realise that it was almost the time AS was going to be in Kathmandu. In the two weeks, I finally found a flower guy who was going to decorate the venue and provide flowers. He was charging me heaps but I was ok as long as he provided what I wanted.

nepali wedding

I also had a meeting with the photographer and was pleased to see his works. He seemed to have a modern outlook with an understanding attitude. I had a very bad experience with the photographer during the engagement so I wanted to make sure that this time we had some nice photos. After negotiating the price I had finally selected the videographer and photographer. The venue was already finalised by my dad and I was happy as it was near our place and very spacious.

Nepali wedding, Newari wedding, Nepali bride , Nepali groom, Traditional Nepali wedding, Nepali wedding Sari

The most important thing was still in limbo, my outfits for the wedding and it’s not that I needed to pick just one dress; I needed 7 outfits in total for different functions. As you may already know in most of the Asian weddings there are different functions and a newari wedding is not any different.

My mum had already bought me one outfit, a red duppta sari and my mother in law had got one for me as well. But for the rest of the functions, I needed to decide what I wanted and to buy them. I have options to go boutique but most of them are super expensive for good one or to buy readymade ones off the shelves.

Nepali wedding, Newari wedding, Nepali bride , Nepali groom, Traditional Nepali wedding, Nepali wedding Sari

In the middle of this crazy preparation, I also needed to go shopping with my MIL as she wanted me to choose the bag, shoes and other stuff that she was going to give me. It was really thoughtful of her so one afternoon, we went shopping and I choose a few shoes, hand bags, and accessories.

AS arrived in Kathmandu and it was so nice to see him again after two weeks. I went with his brother to pick him up from the airport. We had a short time together before they drop me off at my parents’ house and he went to his own parents’ house. From that day, we had 2 weeks for the wedding.

Luckily, when I was talking to one of my friends, she introduced to me to a beauty parlour for my hair and make-up. The last thing to do was buy a few saris and a lehenga for the reception. One afternoon I was determined to finish my shopping so I went with my cousin and bought a lehnga and a few saris. I just didn’t want to think about the outfits anymore as there were so many other things to be organised.

Nepali wedding, Newari wedding, Nepali bride , Nepali groom, Traditional Nepali wedding, Nepali wedding Sari

I also booked for someone to come to our place for our mehendhi ceremony and sort out other details. By then I had one week left for the wedding.

Once AS was in Kathmandu, it was easier for me as I could always ask him to accompany me. We went to order the cakes together. No one was willing to do a cake as per our design. On top of that, there weren’t any nice toppers like we wanted available with them.

So we went to handicraft shops and finally found two different toppers for the two cakes.

Wedding Ceremony

One topper was of a bride carried in olden style basket and the other was of a bride and groom. We loved both of it but again it was hard finding a baker willing to do a cake as we wanted with our toppers.

Wedding Ceremony

Finally, one bakery agreed and we placed our order. We were not sure of the outcome at that point but had no other choice but to trust them.

Later when the cakes were delivered, we were over the moon as they did a great job.

Wedding CeremonyWedding Ceremony

In the mean time I also made 200 packets of Masala (a Sagun bag with lots of dried fruits and nuts) to be given to the Janti.

During that time, it was hard for me to sleep at nights as my mind raced 100 miles an hour thinking of what else needed to be done for the wedding. I never realised that wedding planning was going to be such a tough job but it was. Most nights I slept late and woke up early but things were being done and it was a relief. Every morning I was on the phone and every afternoon running around doing errands. It was such a hectic two weeks for me and on top of that as it was monsoon in Nepal the rain didn’t help at all.

More on the wedding in the next post.

Take care,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to vote your favorite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

 Go to Part 38

Our Story : Wedding plans and hiccups – Part 36

This is a continuation of my previous posts. Please read the previous posts here.

Once we got back from our New Zealand holiday, we had only a few months left before we were to fly to Kathmandu for our big day. The plan was for me to go before AS as he didn’t have many days of leaves. I needed to go ahead and help my parents plan the big day.

During the few months remaining the date of the wedding changed a few times which meant that we need to change out tickets accordingly. I was really annoyed by that but there was nothing we could do from here.

Finally the “Sait” (auspicious time for wedding ceremony) was finalised and according to that the other functions of the wedding were finalised as well. Both our families were busy booking the venues for the functions and receptions.

As most of you already know weddings in Nepal are not a small affair and ours was not going to be small either. Every time we Skyped with our family, they would update us with the progress. Sometimes I felt so helpless listening to them as they were doing so many things and there was not much we could do from here.

From my end, I was trying to organise the photographer and wedding cakes. I also wanted to find a place to buy my bridal outfits and a palour to do my hair and make-up. I think Nepal is one of the worst places to have a wedding if you are trying to find any information online. There are hardly any websites that provide the services and on top of that if you find any and email them, they don’t reply to your queries.

During this time I so wished I had a sister in Nepal who could go around and help me. I felt so lonely and desperate by the end of the process. I was tired, frustrated and annoyed that nothing could be sorted out via the internet. I had to wait until I was in Kathmandu to do everything and I would have only a few weeks before the actual wedding when I got there.

Finally, I got hold of one photographer who seemed good, nothing about the cake was done and my outfits were nowhere near selected. I had a long list of things that needed to be done and most of them were not possible from Sydney. I used to get so annoyed every day but AS was always there to calm me down.

With AS it was easy, he decided that he will wear “daura sural” one day and suits the rest. The only thing he needed to do was give an order for these few suits and everything was sorted for him.

With work keeping me sane and busy, it was finally the day of my flight to Nepal. I was excited and scared at the same time. AS dropped me to the airport and we said goodbye for 2 weeks.

I was praying on the flight that the wedding would go as planned and there would not be any unexpected problems. I really wished someone in Nepal was free so I could get some helping hand with my preparations.

With my mum busy with her job and dad on his business, I was not sure I would be able to manage the list and execute a wedding.

The flight to Kathmandu was fine though long but I was really glad to see my parents at the airport when they came to pick me. I was just glad that I was home and I promised myself that no matter how the wedding was going to go, I would have fun and it would be our special time and nothing should ruin the experience.

Be ready to read about the crazy wedding preparation and wedding in my next posts. Till then,

Take care,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to vote your favorite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

Go to Part 37

Update time

I have been super busy lately because of Dashian and because AS’s Mama (Mum’s brother) and his family is in Sydney visiting from Nepal.

Dashain (18)Dashain (17)

AS usual, Dashain is already a crazy busy time for us but this time it was busier as we needed to go and visit his mama as well as invite them to our place.

Dashain (7)

Even thought it was busy we still had a great time and I am still tired from the celebration. We had Bhoj (feast) for 5 days straight , played cards and heaps of celebration. Here are some pics from this year Dashain.

Dashain (2) Dashain (3) Dashain (1) Dashain (11) Dashain (12) Dashain (4) Dashain (14) Dashain (10) Dashain (6) Dashain (5) Dashain (16)Dashain (13)

Last weekend was also a long weekend here, so we were able to spend some time with Mama and his family.

Dashain (9) Dashain (8)

One day we went to the temple and a picnic afterwards and another day we went to the city.

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We are hoping they will have great time here and return with beautiful memories.

Dashain (15)

On another news, my in-laws will be here soon (in 10 days) so our Tihar is gonna be super busy as well. I am excited and scared at the same time. I have lived with my in-laws before but for only a short period but this time it will be three months.

I know me and AS have been so independent for so long that it will be nice to have them at home when we go home from work. However, at the same time, I am slightly scared thinking how they will feel in a new place with new people.

We have a long list of places to go and things to do while they are here. If you have any ideas about how to keep them entertained while we are at work that will be highly appreciated. We will be taking time off from work here and there but they will still have many days at home without us.

That is the reason, I am a bit scared as I want them to enjoy Sydney and have lots of good memories when they return. It is the first time for them here so I would love them to have a great time in very possible way so they will want to come back again in the future.

I have a million things going on in my head every time I think of their arrival but I am keeping an open mind and hoping for the best.

Hope everyone had good Dashain and weekend.

Take care everyone,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to nominate  your favorite blog .

Nominations open for NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

New Zealand Trip: Magical Queenstown

I had been to Queenstown before but still every time I visit New Zealand I get excited. It was AS’s first time to South Island and I was excited to be there with him to enjoy the natural beauty of the country. I would have to say that one of the most spectacular moments is when you are flying in to Queenstown on the plane. The view is absolutely breathtaking and it always reminds me of going to Kathmandu for some reason. Must be seeing the mountains as we come to land at the airport. The flight was only 3+ hours so we entertained ourselves with many episodes of Big Bang Theory and Modern Family. We also had a light snack of chicken sandwich and tea on-board.

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The flight was smooth except for the time when we were close to landing and it got a bit bumpy. The plane fell for a split second and it felt like I was in a roller-coaster ride. Even though I have flown so many times, it always scares me when they announce a thunderstorm for the very reason. I don’t want to be on a plane which loses altitude suddenly.

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When we landed, we realised that it had been raining. We caught a cab to our hotel and it was drizzling all the way. The lady at the reception told us that it was the first rain in 29 days in Queensland and me and AS looked at each other and hoped it would stop and not ruin our trip. We definitely needed days with the sun out so we could enjoy the beautiful place.

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As I mentioned in my previous post, one of the best thing about Queenstown was the view from our hotel room. It was in front of the Lake Wakatipu with the snow-capped mountains in the background.

Queenstown (4)

Coincidentally, I realised that it was the same hotel I had stayed at when I visited previously as well. Must be the view that was bringing me back again and again to the same hotel.

Since it was already afternoon, we decided to spend the rest of the day exploring the town itself. And honestly, it was worth every minute.

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The people, the view, the environment; everything about Queenstown is just amazing.

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We had already booked a few trips and a car for the next few days so it was nice just walking around the town.

Apart from walking to the town and enjoying the views and shopping round Queenstown Mall, we went to a few other places in Queenstown.

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Skyline Gondola

One of the sunny afternoons, we decided to go on the Gondola to the top of Bob’s Peak. The Gondola skyline sits atop the steepest lift in the Southern Hemisphere, with a top terminal reaching half-a-mile high.

Once we were on the top, the view was spectacular.

Queenstown (5)

The water in the lakes truly is as blue as my photos show as the lake is fed by a glacier.

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We spent a couple of hours on the viewing platform outside the restaurant observing the Luge, Hand-gliding and the 360 degrees of spectacular sights over the Bay and surrounds in the brilliant sunshine. Another hugely memorable highlight of our journey.

There is also a very nice restaurant and some cool gift shops where you get off the gondola and we could not resist the lunch and dessert there. The food was nice and the view priceless.

Queenstown (1)

I loved this sign at the top and could not resist taking a photo :).

Queenstown

Eating in Queenstown

We tried different foods while there and here are some of the highlights:

Fergburger

Everyone who has been to Queenstown before constantly talked about the famous Fergburger and for some reason I had missed it the last time so we decided that we had to go there while we were in town. This burger is so amazing and it is only found in Queenstown.

Fergburger

This place is so popular that it is always busy every day. The evening we went was no exception but we got a seat after we ordered. We order Cockadoodle Doo (chicken burger and chips) waited 15 minutes for it to be ready. I have to say it was worth the hype and the money as it was very flavoursome. The burger was almost as big as my face and I couldn’t finish it all.

Finding Momo

It is amazing to meet Nepalese people wherever we travel. As far as I know there were not that many Nepalese people living in Queenstown but we were so delighted to find a Nepalese café in the middle of the town. We had momo there and it was really tasty as well. Made from scratch and very juicy.

momo

Sake bar

A nice cool Japanese place. AS wanted to have some sake so we tried it out, he loved it. The ambiance was great and we loved the food too. Very cosy and staff were good too.

sake bar (2) sake bar (1)

Bombay Tandoori

The guy at the information centre recommended this Indian restaurant to us. The restaurant was really busy but we enjoyed our food. Because we ordered the set menu, it was two much food for the two of us but it was very nice.

Tandoori Place

More posts from New Zealand soon.

Take care everyone,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to nominate  your favorite blog .

Nominations open for NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

Back to reality from paradise

Hello everyone,

How are you all doing? Thank you for all the love you been sending me and thank you for wishes for my blog anniversary.

I am back in Sydney after our incredible holiday to New Zealand. I have so many things to share with you all but it will take me a while to get back to reality after such an amazing time we had in New Zealand. Until then I will let you enjoy some of the marvellous photos we captured on our trip.

Queenstown (3) Queenstown (4) Queenstown (5) Queenstown (1) Queenstown (6) Milford Sound (1) Milford Sound (2)

I have to say things were on our side as we had good weather and a great time the whole time we were there. One of the highlights for this holiday was the view from our hotel room, which was just breathtaking. Here is a short video I took with my phone from the balcony of our room.

Leaving you with a special kiwi treat, I got for my friends and family :).

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Take care everyone,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO