Singaporebrides | Photography
January 2012
Good Tidings
Most celebrate the birth of Christ on Christmas day but for our couple Junus Hermanus Meroekh, 43, Vice President and Neia Adi Wirjawan, 36, Architect, the 25th of December now calls for another celebration: their wedding anniversary. When most couples would avoid planning their wedding on that festive day, Junus and Neia specifically picked the day out. Read about the hurdles this couple faced in realising their Christmas wedding in 2010 and you might even be inspired to plan one of your own.
How did the two of you meet?
Neia: We met during a social lunch meeting in Jakarta. For two people who had just met, conversation flowed easily between us, and we found out we had plenty in common.
Walk us through the planning for your wedding.
Neia: We respected the decision of Junus’s father and planned for a Christmas wedding in Singapore, so as you can imagine, our wedding involved quite a lot of planning. We had to invite and fly our relatives and friends down from Indonesia and make sure they were comfortably settled in hotel rooms in Singapore, and all these we did ourselves in four short months.
Junus: Because we wanted to wed on Christmas day, it was a near impossible task to find a venue and vendors who were available on that festive day. On top of this, we had to plan the wedding around the pastor’s schedule during the Christmas season too. Since we were in Jakarta, we did most of our research online and liaised with the vendors via e-mail. Thankfully, we managed to find vendors who met our expectations.
Neia: We didn’t exactly have a theme for the wedding, but we were set on having pink for the decorations for a romantic and elegant touch.
What was it like on the actual day of the wedding?
Neia: We had Pastor Djohan Handojo from the Bethany Church of Singapore for our solemnisation ceremony at Chijmes. Saying our vows within the splendid architecture just made the moment more sacred and holy for us. Also, the candelabra-lined aisle added a dose of romance to the moment.
Junus: We then proceeded to The Regent Hotel for the dinner reception. We had help from the hotel’s florist for the flower arrangements for the night and the hotel personnel helped with the planning of the dinner as well. We hired Solid Entertainment and the band Wawan & Friends to keep our guests entertained, and were thrilled to see them having a blast at our wedding.
What did your family and friends have to say about your wedding?
Junus: We had overall good comments for our wedding. They were impressed by the overall elegance and were particularly entertained by our hired entertainers.
Were there any particular moments that were especially special to you?
Neia: The day was filled with numerous special moments, but one moment that still resonates with me until today was when my father-in-law, Mr Jusuf, roused the guests into singing the national anthem of Indonesia. Since nearly half our guests were Indonesian, they were able to join in the singing. It was a breathtaking moment of nationalism.
Junus: We are also very thankful and grateful to all our guests for taking the time to attend our wedding on Christmas day. We also thank God for His blessing for making all this possible for us.
Her Gown: Sophia Wedding Collection
His Suit: Sophia Wedding Collection
Dinner Venue: Regent Singapore, Royal Pavilion Ballroom
The Photographer: Dennis Ng from Dennis Ng Photography
Want to see your love story featured on SingaporeBrides too? Submit your wedding here!
All content from this article, including images, cannot be reproduced without credits or written permission from SingaporeBrides.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram for the latest article and promotion updates!