Sunday, August 27, 2017
It was another full day of wedding stuff in Chennai, starting with the long ceremony that was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. It didn't actually start until past 9:30. There were different stages to the event. It began in the lobby of the hotel, then went up to terrace on the 8th floor, then back at the lobby where Mathew and Rathna swung on a bench while the women in the wedding party washed their feet. Finally, we took the proceedings to the main ball room where the chanting priests did their thing again for a few hours. It was really long and beyond anything I've ever seen, but we were all expecting it so it wasn't so bad. By noon, I needed to check out. I cleared out my room, took my things to Gwen and Nicole's room and checked out in ten minutes, missing nothing in the main ballroom. The chants and ceremonies continued another 45 minutes until it was time for lunch.
After lunch, I took a short nap, then came back down to the lobby just in time to get one last picture with Mathew and Rathna. They hadn't eaten lunch yet, so Nicole and I sat at a table with the Prince and Princess and Rathna's parents while they ate.
Nicole and I asked to leave the compound to go to the mall about 15 minutes away. A driver was reserved for us and we left some after with Greg, who joined us. It was a nice excursion through Channai.
We went to Starbucks and got a couple of souvenirs (I got a mocha...it was good!). We came back to the Hilton about 90 minutes before the wedding reception. I got dressed and hung out with Gwen and Nicole in their room. My flight left at 11:45 p.m., but I needed to leave the hotel at 9. The reception began at 7, so I had a good two hours to eat, hang out, watch the Prince and Princess cut the cake, then say my goodbyes.
It was another full day of wedding stuff in Chennai, starting with the long ceremony that was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. It didn't actually start until past 9:30. There were different stages to the event. It began in the lobby of the hotel, then went up to terrace on the 8th floor, then back at the lobby where Mathew and Rathna swung on a bench while the women in the wedding party washed their feet. Finally, we took the proceedings to the main ball room where the chanting priests did their thing again for a few hours. It was really long and beyond anything I've ever seen, but we were all expecting it so it wasn't so bad. By noon, I needed to check out. I cleared out my room, took my things to Gwen and Nicole's room and checked out in ten minutes, missing nothing in the main ballroom. The chants and ceremonies continued another 45 minutes until it was time for lunch.
After lunch, I took a short nap, then came back down to the lobby just in time to get one last picture with Mathew and Rathna. They hadn't eaten lunch yet, so Nicole and I sat at a table with the Prince and Princess and Rathna's parents while they ate.
Nicole and I asked to leave the compound to go to the mall about 15 minutes away. A driver was reserved for us and we left some after with Greg, who joined us. It was a nice excursion through Channai.
We went to Starbucks and got a couple of souvenirs (I got a mocha...it was good!). We came back to the Hilton about 90 minutes before the wedding reception. I got dressed and hung out with Gwen and Nicole in their room. My flight left at 11:45 p.m., but I needed to leave the hotel at 9. The reception began at 7, so I had a good two hours to eat, hang out, watch the Prince and Princess cut the cake, then say my goodbyes.
