Wedding Prep Day 1

Last week of March - My planner friend told me that St. Paul is free on June 2 and sent me pics of the reception venue options.

April 8 - I called up my mom and told her that I am getting married. It goes like this, I called her up on her cellphone:
Ring.. Ring.. Ring
Mama: hello?
Ria: Hello mama?
Mama: bakit man?
Ria: magpakasal na kami ni Dan.
Mama: HA?!
(and you can guess what happens next)

April 12 - Booked my flight to Davao online. Had overtime at work until 10:30 pm.

April 13 - Left Manila at 4 am and arrived in Davao at 7:30 am. Slept until 8:30 am. Oniel my planner and Dan went to the house. Plotted our day's schedule, called up the church to check kung masisingit pa ako sa May 19. Since ndi, June 2 na talaga.

• 9:30 We passed by the church to make an appointment with the priest and booked our schedule. Then off we went to City Hall to file for our marriage license. Since maraming kilala si mama doon, we finished faster than usual.
• 10:30 After that we went to Marco Polo to check the place and asked for their package, which costs 1,200 per person. Nahilo ata si Dan sa presyo, so we went to our next option in Davao Convention Center which offers a more reasonable price and package, ndi namin nagustuhan ang carpet kasi marumi na so we just put it in our shortlist.
• 12:00 My brother suggested that we can check Ladislawa Village Clubhouse, Dan loved the place because it is secluded and very intimate. But i didn't really like it because it was too small.
• 1:00 My Dad said to also check Tulip Grand Plaza, a new place sa kanto ng village namin. It is a smaller version of Davao Convention Center that offers the same package and price kasi pareho lang ang may-ari. For me it was perfect, it is near the church and it is still new and the size is big enough for dancing. =)
• 1:30 Went back to the house for a sumptuous lunch. And asked my Kuya if he can suggest some names for our photo and video. He suggested his artist friends from Alchemy of Light and Vision. This is the production house that creates digital films, like the well-awarded Ang Huling Balya (something like that).
• 2:30 We went to meet the photo and videographer my kuya suggested. I liked the photog right away, kasi madali kausap and magaling sa candid shots. Which is good for my idea about my prenup pics. He is a cinematographer also, he's name is Mark Limbaga. So I booked him right away for the next day's prenup pictorial.
• 3:30 Met with my gown designer. I can't post his name because he is a designer of a well known shop in Davao and he is making my gown "under the table". He is a friend of my planner and I found out that he is also a barkada of our kapitbahay. He gave me a cheap package for 12k, kasama na ang swarovski studded tiara. =) I really liked his design, I first showed him a design from Monique Luillher, but he said it was expensive kasi lace lahat. So he created another design which I liked better. Ang tawag niya sa design ko is "simple na bigaon". =)
• 5:00 While waiting for the designer, Oniel showed us selections of the videog/photog in Davao. I originally wanted Lito Sy but he was too expensive, plus ndi naman talaga si Lito Sy ang kukuha. So we settled with Kenneth Arquiza of Edit Station One because of his reasonable price and nice work, he is not as amazing as my dream man Jason Magbanua pero okay na. With Photog, I wanted the famous Joseph Benavides because he already knows my angles pero more than that I want my dearest friends to relax and enjoy on my wedding. So this time, I'm giving him a break and mingle with the chicks than crawling and sweating to get the best shots. ;p Pero sana kunan pa rin niya ako ng pictures hehehe. Anyways, while fitting and talking with the designer, Oniel was making as an appointment with Kenneth and then head off to Obrero in his studio. Talking to kenneth was like haggling some stuff in Divisoria, he wanted us to make a down payment right away so he was saying na baka tumaas na presyo nya next day. Buti na lang mas matigas mag negotiate si Oniel, ndi nadala sa kanyang intsik style.
• 6:30 Went to Golden Touch, a flowershop, event stylist owned by Oniel's barkada. Bongga talaga ang designs niya and pati presyo niya. He is out of our budget, konti na lang ka-presyo na niya ang food cost namin. He is worth it naman, pero spending too much on decorations is not on our list. Oniel tried to haggle though, pero ayaw ata niya. Good thing, Oniel found a better way. Kilala niya yung main artist ng Golden Touch. =)
• 8:00 Back at home and had dinner. After dinner, Oniel and Dan plotted the budget in Excel. Ang saya ni Dan kasi the wedding became cheaper than he expected. Thanks to Oniel and his connections.
• 9:00 The day isn't over yet, we wasted no time. After the budget plotting, my brother drove us to different hotels and apartelle near the church for our guests from Manila and Cebu. We chose Jogue's Apartelle because it was very near the church and the place is so charming. =)