last weekend - a wedding

last weekend we went back to Penang to send my inlaws back, which was partly the reason, as my husband was invited to an ex colleague's wedding reception at E&O Hotel on Saturday.

i was intrigued to attend the wedding in the E&O as it boasted a colourful history as being the first luxury hotel during the colonial era. built in 1885 by the four Armenian brothers, the 'Sarkies', it has seen two World Wars and is still proudly serving guests in 2011 (after undergoing an extensive renovation in 2001).

for more of its rich chronicles, click here.

mind you, rich is the imperative word here, as the going rate starts at a 'meagre' RM 730 for the 'essential' room, hence we would not be easily inclined to spend the night there - unless of course, i manage to coax my other half to not spend at least a night at his house nearby. :)

as we arrived at the place, about half an hour's late at 1230pm, we looked for our names on the list of guests and their related table number on the wall, near the main ballroom. we found out that our table was upstairs of the ballroom, akin to Circle level if you are familiar with 'show hall' terminology. of which i quipped to my hubby, "either we're special or not special."

turned out we're not - as most closed-knitted and VIP guests, as well as the blushing bride and the immaculate groom were seated downstairs in the main ballroom (Stall level) - but it gave us a bird eye's view of the place. the ballroom was indeed grand in a subtle kind of way, not ostentatiously so, but quietly refined, like it does not need to prove itself. i would imagine it was heavily used for fancy parties and débutante proms back in its heydays. well, of course, for wedding receptions, notwithstanding.

this was the hallway that leads to the ballroom

the food was all right but not superb. we were initially served hors d'oeuvre comprising of a fusion of gado-gado, along with skewered satay with peanut sauce and some imperceptible salad thingy. then it was chicken broth with carrots and potatoes cut into little pieces. i loved that simple dish because i was in the mood for something soupy. after that, the main course. we had to wait for the servers to bring out the food one by one that i thought it was meant to be like that as the bride was half Chinese. turned out, it was due to inefficiency, rather than design. there was the 'XL prawn' dish which was dispensed out first and put on the table but was moments later taken away right after the waitress served us one piece each. huh? was i the only foodie who noticed that? because the rest of the dishes were left on the table - rice, chicken, fish, beef, veggies and 'acar' (spiced pickled fruits) - where we could liberally consume.

there was the usual wedding entertainment, which was clearly arranged by the parents of the bride because of the demographic of the singers. the songs being belted out were various enough, consisting of a multitude of past and present hits, of which at some point, they sang a Selamat Hari Raya number. i had an okay time, considering there were two other guests sitting at the table of ten. all of which were from my hubby's former bank. i guess it would have been a better experience if i had known the pengantins on a personal level, but it was the first time i've seen them - and it was from the balcony overlooking the Stall level of the majestic ballroom. :P

(apparently as i found out later, the reception was the bride side's, so we could not blame the seating arrangement being unfavourable as we're from the groom side. i was of course, telling myself this to nurse a bruised ego. hah!)

we left around 3pm, after hubby had said his thank you and goodbye to the newly-weds, while i conveniently sneaked into the ladies for a little private time and mainly, to check it out. the Deco was still yesteryears that i had to snap a picture of the pre War ladies WC. and blimey, thank goodness the flush still worked. 

the boys would love the swimming pool!

before we headed out, hubby indulged me to some photo taking outside the hotel looking out the seaside. and i took one of him candidly. i know he would thank me later. *grin*

photo credits are from the official E&O site.

personal photos are not uploaded because this is a public portal. :)