two steps behind

Dear readers…

Tomorrow I’ll be going for 6-months to boot camp. The boot camp has been waiting for me since I was 21.

I haven’t had much time to write or any chance to take many photos these past months due to “things” that had to be handled prior to me departing to boot camp.

Hopefully this boot camp will help me get fit & firm up my aging body.

The boot camp schedule includes 10 weeks of basic military training, 1 week of rest and another 13 weeks of working “somewhere,” as they see fit. Hopefully, I’ll have some time off to update www.TwoStepsBehind.com now and then.

The hardest part, in my opinion, is the basic training that includes running, sit-ups, push-ups, digging a hole, climbing fences… etc. Yup, that is a real challenge for me, a person that hasn’t been working out for years.

Well, a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do!

That’s just how life is… just like a tree that has to withstand anything that comes along.

Once a year, our hotel will host for a Staff Party… the time that everyone is waiting for because of all the fun activities, the performance from different departments and the secret performance from our Executive Committees! The show wasn’t the only highlight of the party but there are prizes, awards and lucky draws.

The top prize this year is… a trip for 2 to “any” country in Europe, sponsored by Kuwait Airline! Imagine that…! Such an amazing prize! The runner up are 1 gold bar and an iPad!

Unfortunately… I didn’t win any of those prizes nor any at all from the party. But I get to be one of the 4 MCs at the party. I discovered that… speaking Thai properly isn’t easy at all. I was more comfortable to speak in English rather than in Thai.

Another good opportunity that I has was that, the Staff Party committee assigned me to get a shot of the hotel which then printed 6 meters wide and 3 meters tall!… THE BIGGEST print that any of my photos has ever been printed!

After all, the photo is just part of the party and was over shadowed by the fun and all the activities that night!

after a long… disappearance due to loads of work, I am back just to let you know that…
Well it’s all said right in the screen capture today!.

Long story short;

WE WON.

Thank you everyone for your support and your votes! Thank you very much.
Holiday Inn Resort Baruna Bali, HERE I COME!!!!!

^______^

Enjoying the local transportation.

Friends are a gift we give ourselves. But for our Bali trip, we need your help.

What a delight it is to be at Bali with your BFFs. Right? So feel free to vote for us. )

Humm… These are photos that we (InterContinental and Holiday Inn Bangkok’s Sales and Marketing team) have submitted for a shot at a trip to Bali! Of course not all of us would get to go, but we will work something out once we win it! (Positive thinking ^_^)

Well… I am not asking much at all… just a minute of your valuable time to vote for us, once a day… for 5 days. That is only 5 minutes total of your valuable time. Your vote matters as we are competing with everyone around the world. Well, hopefully a top 10 would be awesome!

Any clicks will help!
Simply click the images above to the FACEBOOK page and click “VOTE NOW”

Thank you all for your CLICKs.
(Maybe I’ll get to go to Bali and bring back memories to share with everyone here)

As much as I would like to try to describe the details of the wedding, I don’t think that I could get into many details. However, there is another blog by Richard Barrow of Thai Cultures Blog, that has information regarding the Thai wedding. The blog provides very detailed insights into the Thai wedding ceremony.

I guess it would make more sense to read his blog then come back to check out the photos that I have taken on the wedding date.

Enjoy

A moment to remember…

A story of a girl whom had ventured to do her internship far away from home. There, she had met her soul mate… Jo! Their story is one to remember… Jo, a man whom had been waiting for the one and Por, a woman whom has found her prince charming at the least expected place.

… to see more of their story, please visit http://www.por-jo.com/ there, you will find a collection of their wedding photos and a MUST SEE video of their story.

On March 14, 2010 I got the chance to take picture of the Thai wedding ceremony of Por and Jo. It was amazing; the room, the location and the moment…. felt magical. The feeling of someone that is committing their life to another is just unexplainable. Yet, the feeling of the parents letting go of their daughter, whom they raised since day one, was just too overwhelming for simple pictures, videos or any words can describe those moments.

I, a mere photographer, can only try to capture those moments to share with us all.

Date: March 14, 2010
Location: The Rose Garden

The guests must have gotten me confused, as for some reason, all the guest will ask me again right asking for their table and direction. Oh well, funny enough… I became a host, greeting all the guests and directed them to their assigning table.

Oh yes! This is about June and Paul’s wedding celebration. As I was occupied with greeting the guests, I didn’t have much of a chance to take pictures, but please do check the pictures out as it was a really amazing wedding. Allow me to try to describe the experience from the guest’s perspective.

Each guest will be greeted with a photos gallery archway where the guest can see June and Paul’s pre-wedding photos taken by PaHn and I. It was a really good feeling to see our photos hanging in the archway and even better when the guests stop to look at each photo.

After the photo gallery archway, was a table with presented pre-wedding photo albums taken by a professional photographing service. A really nice album that I wish someday to have a chance to do one for a couple. The guests will then meet with the bridesmaids that helping out the event. The bridesmaids then direct the guests to a flower archway where they will take group photo with June and Paul before they were then lead to their table.

… a very lovely couple indeed!

The wedding day has finally arrived for June and Paul, but who would have known that the ceremony started at about 4:00 am!

The wedding tradition in Thailand involves the handover of the bride by her family to the groom and his family. The time of the handover, moving out from her house to move in to his house is really important. It is believed that there is a specific moment, the right time for this handover as when done properly will bring prosperity, good fortune and longevity for the couple.

The engagement ceremony for June and Paul is a Chinese one which involves a tea ceremony where June and Paul offer “tea” to the groom’s family members. This tradition is for the couple to show respect to the family and also for the family to show acceptance of the couple marriage.

The morning engagement ceremony lasted til about 11:00 am and then everyone was off to get ready for the evening’s wedding celebrations!

Having not written for a while… only means I am way too busy with work. No, I haven’t forgotten about twostepsbehind. As a matter of fact, I check the web’s stats everyday. Some of my friends and families are starting to wonder of what have I been doing here in Bangkok, Thailand.

January 09, 2010 was the first time that I get the opportunity to take photos of the lovely couple for their pre-wedding photo. It was really fun and I really enjoy seeing the couple’s love that they are sharing and caring for each other. It’s proof that… love exists!

And that was how my interest in portrait photographing began.