Compliments??? ;)

Posting some comments that I received by folks who saw my wedding album..... :)

Ezhil: its so beautiful...she luks like a doll...man u r so lucky...ofcourse..u deserve her...have a wonderful life together..:)

Iya: Beautiful pics... great yaa... wish u the very best with Iram.. u guys look great together....

Amit: nice pics. Iram is looking beautiful and masood for some reason looking fairer :) wish you both a great life ahead

Sai: Great pics bro!! You guys look great together! Congrats!!! Let me know when you settle down and I shall call you.

Deepa: Congrats dude...wow...u both look so nice....ur wifey is damn beautiful..lucky u :-) looking forward to meet u ppl...hope u come to delhi sometime soon :-)

Tara: lovely pics :) the best is the one with the longest caption.. where you are carrying mrs salem to somewhere ;)

Sangeeta: awsome pics, your wife is really really preety... for sure you are lucky to get such a pretty wife, well tum bhi kaam nahi lag rahee hoo, most handsome perhaps in life till now. wish you both a wonderful life ahead full of all happiness of yours desire.

Tijs: sweet pictures!!! Really beautiful clothes and decorations. Awesome tie too that you were wearing at the reception. Just curious, are you not supposed to smile in pictures?

Puja: hey she is looking damn gorgeous, esp in the red, and blue one absolutely mind blowing. You also look dashing as usual. My fren who saw the pic complimented both of u :) wow that pic where you picked up Iram is damn cute.

Radhika: Lovely bride and good humor (urs!) ...u sure make a great couple :) ok now before u complain....u too look dashing! regal actually :)

Me: Thanks a lot, guys! :p

Part 2 - Singapore!

Ok, so if you felt Malaysia was good, wait till you hear about Singapore!!! ;)

We took the train from KL to Singapore. I was told that the ride is very scenic. And we were not disappointed. The ride is about 6 hrs, through mountains, forests, rivers and towns. If you think the city is beautiful, wait till you see the countryside! We reached Singapore at around 3pm. Immigration formalities took about an hour. There was a friendly man named Lee holding a placard with 'Salem, Mr. and Mrs. Masood - Welcome to Singapore'. He gave us a kit with all vouchers (hotel, food, entry tickets etc), tour itinerary, emergency contact nos. etc. And we were on our way. The first evening was at our leisure. We were staying on Orchard road, which is the Mecca for shopping malls in Singapore. Think of any famous fashion designer or brand, and you could see their boutique/outlet there. We spent close to 2 hrs walking around...no, not to shop but hunting for an Indian restaurant!!! After 4 days of oriental & fast food, we were terribly Indian 'food-sick' (is that even a word?!). To our respite, we found one and, finally, ate to our heart's fill. Back on the street, our hunt now was for desserts! And, after 2 extra-large scoops of Ben & Jerry's ice cream, a thick strawberry cheesecake ice cream shake, it was time to hit the sack!

Our tour itinerary had the following mentioned for next day: "1.00 pm : Afternoon to Sunset tour of Sentosa Island". Who would have thought then that this was going to be the best damn afternoon of our tour!!! At 1pm sharp, as we got down to the hotel lobby, there was a large bus waiting for us outside. Sentosa is a small leisure island not too far from Singapore. We took the cable car (yes, lucky enough to, once again, get a chance!) to Sentosa.

Going towards Sentosa Island

This was on our left

First up, we had visit to the Singapore Museum. Now, this is not just any other museum, where you find weird stuff put on walls or on show. This place is a walk through history. Every event in Singaporean history is recreated in wax structures. Something like Madam Tussuad's wax statues - only difference is, this museum has not restricted itself just with human beings! Heck..they even recreated war torn Singapore! And with sound effects!!! It was amazing.

Singapore being 'signed'!

Hindu ritual of walking on burning coal

A typical market place in Singapore in 1920s

Next, trip to the underwater world. As the name suggests, it is a GIANT walk-through aquarium. With us in a narrow tube, water in all four directions, it was breathtaking!!

Underwater world

From the underwater world, our next stop was for the Dolphin show. Need I say more?!

After which, we stopped for the Musical fountain/fireworks/laser show. Again, need I say more!

It was 10pm by the time we were back to our hotel, after a wonderful and memorable day.

We had a half day Singapore city tour scheduled next morning from 8am!!! Instead, we went shopping to the most popular shopping center in Singapore called Mustafa market. And the evening was our trip for the Night Safari. Another adventurous experience hanging around the forest at night within close proximity of wild as well as domesticated animals. After dinner, we were back to the hotel and started with our packing! Our return flight was next morning at 11.15am.

Honeymoon - A dream in Malaysia and Singapore (Part 1)

And what a week we had! We booked a honeymoon package for 7 nights/8 days with 4 nights in Malaysia and 3 in Singapore. Our tour operator had every single detail taken care off including tickets, visas, hotel accommodation, pickup and drop, sightseeing, food etc etc. So, all we really needed to do was....just be there!!

We flew from Chennai on 3rd late night for Kuala Lumpur (KL). Landed early morning and in an hour were on our way to Genting. Quick note here: At KL airport, we had to take the internal train to move from the arrival section to the exit....the airport is that HUGE!!! So back to Genting, this is a small city located at approx. 3000 feet, on top of a mountain - almost in and above the clouds. Genting city is just a collection of 4-5 resorts, all interconnected. They have an outdoor & indoor theme park, shopping malls, restaurants, cable cars, bowling alleys, cinema halls, snow world, concert halls etc. No wonder it is also known as 'The city of Entertainment'. What truly amazed me was how colorful and bright everything was. And the view from our room was breathtaking!

View from our room...

Down below, far away, peeping through the clouds we could see KL city, the Petronas towers, the KL tower etc.

2 days in Genting was filled with lots of fun and shopping. Not to forget our first experience on Asia's fastest and longest cable car. It was just WOW! Awana is another city located on a mountain and the cable cars connect both of them. At 3000 feet, with only the sky above, tropical rain forests below, clouds all around - it was breathtaking!!!

From our cable car

For 45 min, we felt we were 'out-of-this-world'!!! Next, we visited the Snow World. The following day was Chinese new year (The year of the Rat). So we had fireworks, dances, live music on the streets that midnight.

It was cold, misty and windy. And we were out till 3am, strolling, hand in hand, relishing the moment, and trying to live our entire lives that night, with each passing minute!

Next day, at noon we checked out of hotel and were on our way to KL. The ride downhill was, again, mind-blowing. KL was like any other international city - skyscrapers, hotels, restaurants, pubs, gardens, history, cultural centers etc. We were so shell-shocked by our experience in Genting that KL almost went unnoticed...almost! Because no one can NOT notice the great Petronas Towers!!!!

With a height of 1500 feet, 88 stories of sheer engineering marvel, the twin towers are just sight to behold, standing tall with unabashed arrogance, intimidating and daunting! Not too publicized though, is the KL tower, which is the 4th tallest telecommunication tower in the world with a height of 420 meters (1380 feet).

The twin towers and KL tower

We visited the observation deck, which was 280 meters, that gave a birds-eye view of the entire city.

Twin towers as seen from the observation deck on KL Tower

The KL tower also boasts of the highest McDonalds outlet in the world, and yes, we had a couple of burgers too!!

Next: Part 2 - Singapore!!! :)

Happy :)

Leading up to the wedding, I had so much to write (read: share) and now that its over, I am almost blank! It has been an overwhelming last 30 days for me. I got married (duh!), hosted a reception, went on a dream honeymoon, attended numerous parties hosted on our behalf, lived for a few days with my in-laws, left my wife back at her place, traveled back to Dubai and now am back to work - all in a span of 1 month!

Close to 4 months back, in my first post, I was confused, not sure to feel happy or scared or nervous. But I can, confidently and with pride, state that I am happy! :)

Mr. and Mrs. Masood Salem

For more than one reason, I had to take this pic off but I have created an album online and would be glad to share it :)

Yipee!!

A major task preceding the wedding got taken care of yesterday: The Suit! :) Yes, I bought my suit last night and what a beauty it is! For weeks I had imagined what it was going to be and often wondered if I'd ever find one like that. But yesterday I did! :) Massimo Dutti had an exact replica of my imaginative suit. I took, at most, 7-8 min, after trying it on, to decide I was going to buy it, despite the obscene price tag attached to it, which I conveniently decided to ignore! :p. My bro thought it was made for me. And about an hour later, we walked out of the store, me absolutely delighted (read: on top of the world!) on my latest addition (almost - it gets delivered to me on Monday) to my wardrobe. And did I mention, I also bought my shoes - a pair of Steve Madden, which I felt went beautifully with my suit.

So, all in all, it was a very productive (that also got me on the verge of bankruptcy!) evening of shopping. I still have some more to do but what remains is just the tip of the iceberg!

05 Jan 08: Quick update - I purchased my sherwani today!!! Now I feel I am really going to get married! Got it at a good bargain price. After trying it on, I got my first compliment as well, which was by Ruhi, who said, "Now you really look like a Dulha!". And, ofcourse, I love it! :)

is this normal??

Now I feel I am really getting married!!! And frankly, it is making me quite anxious. A lot goes behind organizing a wedding, most of which I don't personally have to worry about or do, but it still needs to be done. What if something goes wrong? What if.....? What if....? Things...thoughts keep pouring into my head. I am trying my best to keep cool, to be positive. Is this normal? I ask this to all the married folks out there - is this normal??

Thanks guys :-)

I was supposed to write about something else but I just can't help myself.

As we all know, the wedding is scheduled for 25th Jan and reception on 27th. And one of the things that I am waiting most for is meeting all my friends. And what even makes me happier is most of them are, hopefully, going to make it :-) Sumit is going to join me on 24th afternoon from Kolkata and will be with me throughout the wedding and reception. Varun plans to reach Hyd on 26th from Ahmedabad and will be with me at the reception. Iya, Abhijeet and Puja plan to reach Hyd on 27th morning from Bangalore. Amit is flying in from Delhi. Nilesh has a tentative plan as well. Other guys like Abhishek, Radhika etc are already stationed in Hyd. So far, these guys have confirmed! :-)

All I can say is that, with my best friends by my side, they are going to make this the most memorable day of my life! Thanks a lot, guys! :-) Looking forward to seeing you all....soon! Actually....can't wait!!!!!!!

Honeymoon

Finally, I found something that I can do for the wedding that is of my interest - searching for honeymoon packages!! Where to go? for how long? when? how much moolah? etc etc. My first option is Italy. It has always been my dream destination. The remarkable history associated with that country, the absolutely breath-taking scenic beauty, the castles, mountains, museums, rivers, islands, fashion, pasta, Ferrari! - just the very thought of it completely spins my mind. Rome, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Milan, Bologna...the list is endless. I always wondered what makes a honeymoon special? I don't have any prior experience (:p) but I am guessing its gota be something like this. So, that's that! Decided - Italy it is!
I am tempted to look for other backup options but that would take my mind off Italy. So, for now, I'm gona spend all my time figuring out a good Italian honeymoon package for myself. Cheers!

Should'nt I be doing some thing as well?

The wedding has created such a stir in my family. All of a sudden, all tasks are P1. My dad, who is in India for the last 15 days, and if we go by the speed of his preparations, maybe thinks the wedding is...next week! He's got the travelling taken care off - both, train reservations and cars, wedding hall - booked, head chef - booked (and I am sure the menu as well, though I cannot confirm that just yet), invitation cards - in the printing press, hotel accommodation for the guests - booked, renovations to our ancestral home - started.... (and I am sure the list is longer! He's back this Friday and I will get to know more).

My eldest sister-in-law has asked for services of her elder brother (who is a fashion designer) for the wedding and reception dresses for herself and for my nephew, who is 4! My other sister-in-law spends 2 hrs in the market every day checking out what's hot on the fashion scene. And my sister, who is currently in India, calls me every day to discuss what she thinks we should do with the bride's dress, make-up, travelling plans etc. My mom, oh well, like all other moms, is coordinating the whole thing.

All this when we have a good 3 months to go. Frankly, I begin to wonder....isn't there something that I should be doing as well?

Gold? Done!

Yesterday evening, the first item of the wedding's shopping list was ticked off - Gold!

And boy, did it dig a hole in my pocket!! Quite a coincidence that I got my first salary yesterday too. Need I say more?!!

Oh, by the way, what's with the gold price these days? All it does is - go up! They say it is coz of a possible recession in the US economy, weak dollar, fluctuating oil prices, subprime crisis bla bla n more bla. Frankly, my economy is in danger if this remains the case! Gold is at an all-time high this week and is expected to go further up by the end of this year. So in anticipation of that, we went ahead and took the plunge.

And then, there's always Murphy's law!

Wedding Bells

So, I am getting married!

Not sure if I am happy, scared, nervous, worried, ecstatic or sad...

They say 'Marriages are made in heaven'. Really? I don't know and maybe I might never find out. But I see a lot of happily married people (with or without kids) around me, living perfectly normal, happy lives and that drives me towards optimism. Maybe, marriages can be successful after all. Maybe, there is some profound wisdom behind that saying after all. I guess only time will tell.

But yes, exactly 3 months from today, my life will change forever! I will be married to the women of my dreams. That very thought brought a smile on my face.

Maybe, I really am happy..