15th Anniversary…

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On a cool and breezy late afternoon in December, fifteen years ago this week, the setting was nothing short of magical… The San Sebastian Basilica in Quiapo, Manila had just turned a hundred years old, and it was the only all steel Gothic style church in Asia, transported on several ships from the steel foundries in Belgium. With an altar and some pews made of silver, intricate steel patterns, and an ornate, yet quiet elegance, it seemed like the perfect place for us to get married. Yes, this week Mrs. Marketman and I are celebrating our 15th Wedding Anniversary… and a few days ago as we were frantically unearthing winter clothing from storage cabinets for our last minute unplanned trip to New York City in freezing weather, I ran across her wedding gown. I took it out of its wrapper to have a closer look and reminisce…

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The Kid was around and eagerly tried on her mom’s wedding gown. She is only 12 but the gown fit like a glove around her midsection and was the perfect height for it… Mrs. MM could actually have been thinner than the Kid is now! The gown was relatively simple for the times, when serious beading and over-the-top concoctions were de rigeur. Mrs. MM had the gown custom made, and many yards of custom designed hand embroidery destined for the workshops of Giorgio Armani (yes, he used to source embroideries here for his couture gowns) were edged in gold threads and embroidered with sequins and seed pearls. Despite the relative restraint for that time, the gown still weighed several kilos and now that I have had a chance to inspect it closely, I fear for the number of folks who may have ruined their eyesight making it. Gowns today are much less elaborate, but on closer inspection, you just have to marvel at the hand work in the these older style gowns…

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With a string quartet playing classical music, a soprano (I think) singing some of the songs, and simple white flowers, there is little we would have changed if we had a chance to do it all over again. We emerged from the church to a perfect Manila Bay sunset and stepped into an enormous 1940’s grey Packard automobile which ferried us to a nearby reception with 150 guests. It seemed like a fairy tale then, and for many reasons, it still feels like a fairy tale today… Happy 15th (Crystal) Anniversary, Mrs. MM!

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Marketman

Marketman is a well-traveled management consultant who loves buying, cooking and eating good food. Read more »

91 Responses

  1. Happy anniversary to you & Mrs. MM! Wish you more love and happiness for all the years to come! and may the kid find someeone just like you to share her life with when the time comes :)

  3. I myself got married last month and we still have that “wedding high” as they call it. Couldnt be happier coz i met the right girl for me after being single for nearly 40yrs! Happy anniversary MM!!! i hope for continued joy, love and happiness for you and Mrs MM :)

  4. Congratulations to you and Mrs. MM on your Crystal Wedding Anniversary and to the fruit of your bountiful union The Kid! 15 years of married life and still in honeymoon phase this equates to a prosperous lasting marriage that evolves, flourishes, enriches and nurtures as each day of your married life and keeping the sanctity of marriage! Magnificent haute couture wedding gown with fine and detailed needle work – I can picture on the day of your wedding Mrs. MM an eye catcher bride in a beautiful gown and you a very dashing groom!

  5. Beautiful and elegant…the MM family trademark. Very nice indeed. Happy Crystal Anniversary, Mr. & Mrs. MM!!!

  6. Happy Anniversary to you and Mrs. MM. We wish you good health, more wealth and lasting happiness.

  7. Happy anniversary MM and Mrs. MM! The gown is beautiful. But the most beautiful thing about this post is MM’s declaration that 15 years after the marriage, it still feels like a fairy tale. Napaka-sweet naman. :) May you have more blissful years together!

  8. Happy people tend to see things in a positive way and work on keeping it as such. Happy 15th :)

    New York…hmmmm….does that mean you get to have another “guess how much the luggage weighs?” ;)

  12. hi mr. & mrs MM! happy anniversary! i’m a new visitor to the site, so i only got to read this after i e-mailed a question. so heartwarming to read how much thoughtfulness comes from a husband on the wedding anniversary. enjoy the day!

  13. Happy 15th wedding anniversary Mr. & Mrs. MM! Here’s to more blissful years of marriage…enjoy your NY break!

  16. Congratulations to you MM and Mrs.MM on your 15th Wedding Anniversary!

    We wish that more blessings will come your way!

    That gown is exquisite and magnifique! Enjoy NY!

  17. Our congratulations to your 15th Wedding Anniversary! A lovely wedding gown can speak poignancy and for others, well…life does have its twists and turns. Which is why Mrs. MM’s beautiful wedding gown is an analogy of marital growth as well!

  18. Congratulations on your 15th Wedding Anniversary! It looks like you are still on the honeymoon stage which is very rare nowadays. I have friends and cousins who had their marriage annulled already.
    Tomorrow we are going to attend the 50th Wedding Anniversary of my uncle ( my mom’s brother). I am always impressed by couples who had withered the weather despite all storms in their life! It is really for better or for worst and their children are all professionals! From a neonatologist, to a director in a government agency to a pharmacist manager in California, to a a cousin who is in the hotel and restaurant
    job internationally, to an engineer who had maintained a Filipino family tradition in Alisso Viejo in Orange County in California and to a computer wizzard and a cousin who works in ADB. Hey, they are all products of this blissful 50 years of marriage.

    My cousin, on the other hand is burried at the moment! She was flown in from Winnipeg-Vancouver and the Philippines. She should have arrived Christmas day but it was delayed. She came home yesterday. Why do I mention this? She is wearing her wedding gown on her coffin which she brought back to Canada and and I am impressed that she had preserved it through the years. She was married 30 years ago with my mother as one of the principal sponsors.
    If there is one thing Filipinos should be
    proud about, it is the value that we have on family and marriage.

  20. Happy Crystal Wedding Anniversary Mr. and Mrs. Marketman…
    Wishing you and your family good health and happiness always…

  22. happy anniversary! so where was the reception? let me guess.. was it somewhere in intramuros??… manila hotel???… food must have been great, knowing your taste and style… happy holiday, mr and mrs. marketman!!!!

  27. Congratulations Mr. & Mrs MM.

    Such an intricate gown. Very beautiful.

    My niece who studied fashion design here in Houston and is now back in Paranaque (employed by Nike Phils) also design and sew bridal gown and clothings (for the whole entourage). She still hand sew beads and other delicate designs. She has other seamstress, but when it comes to beadings, she has to have her own personal touch. She also designs for local and international fashion models and designers. And she loves doing this things for the love of love.

  28. Happy wedding anniversary Mr & Mrs. MM!

    the gown is really fabulous! with so much intricate details in it. with all the pearls and beads in it..

  35. Beautiful gown and even more beautiful is your post, MM! Cheers and Godbless for 15 years of love and here’s to another lifetime! :)

  36. Wishing you and Mrs MM more years of wedded bliss! My parents are celebrating their 39th wedding anniv today (dec 28) and we are looking forward to celebrating their 40th anniv next year.
    Mrs MM’s gown is fabulous! Maybe, the Kid can wear it(or parts of it) to her own wedding. That way, she brings with her a symbol of her parents’ wonderful marriage to her own married life.

  37. Happy Crystal Anniversary! How apt to the theme that you are celebrating it amidst snow and ice. Was that a coincidence, or the inspiration for this surprise trip? And what a lovely wedding gown! Beautifully detailed and luxuriously handmade, yet still elegant and restrained. Your reception must surely have been the same. With only 150 guests (HOWEVER did you manage to keep it to that number, in Manila???), one can spend more time, effort and budget for the finer things, rather than scrimp in order to host more people (half of whom you might not even really like).

  38. MM, what a wonderful recollection. Happy anniversary to you both.

    I have a question though, what was served for the reception?

  39. my brother’s marriage is on the rocks. turns out, his wife is a conniving gold digger. nowadays, people really need to be practical about marriage and by that i mean, one keyword: pre-nup. but looks like you guys have no such problems. so congrats! couples like you give me some shadow of hope that marriage CAN last. =)

  40. happy anniversary, marketman! just like you i’m also happily married… except that in my case, my wife is “happy” and i am “married”… bwahahaha… happy holidays!!!

  41. happy anniversary mr. & mrs. mm!!! what an absolutely fantabulous time to get married, right in between christmas and new year!!!

    may all courtships never end….

  42. Happy Anniversary!!!
    Getting married in San Sebastian makes me go aaahhhhh.
    My aunts live in Bibilid Viejo and their house is just beside the church. My cousins and I love to watch the weddings. I can just imagine how your stomach must have felt when they open those doors and you see the silhouette of Mrs. M. Love the dress!

  45. Thank you everyone for all those kind greetings… somehow, 15 years seems to have flown by rather quickly. As usual, a few of you have nailed things “on the head” and while I had omitted details, you have asked the questions nonetheless… so here are some of the answers: Jules, yes, I think the date was a good one… it means you will see folks you really like/love, but casual guests will not attend due to the timing. It also is great for relatives from abroad who want to come home for a holiday and throw in a wedding too. crazy monkey, I have to agree with you statistically that the chances of lasting a substantial time are increasing small, but a pre-nup seems a bit of a downer way to start things out unless starting wealth is an issue… Em Dy, oddly, I don’t recall the menu at all, but I do recall a tremendous amount of champagne for the number of guests. Katrina, great questions… to answer: Marketman and Mrs. MM paid for almost all of our own wedding and reception, so we called all the shots. Parents were given 25 invitations each, and all political guests banned. So we ended up with friends and close family only… Trish, if the kid keeps growing, this wedding gown will be knee length…heehee. solraya, the trip isn’t a shopping one, so we won’t have much luggage… ajyoung, congrats to you guys! Thanks again!

  46. Hi MM,

    They say that December is the peak season for weddings in the Philippines exactly for the reasons that you mentioned. Festive mood all around and families and friends home for the holidays. My wedding is also part of the Dec stat but it happened a year before yours.

    Got a treat last night reading the blog “Parisian Breakfasts”. The blogger’s gift to the readers is a virtual tour of all the wonderful store displays in New York this year. The photos had me drooling and I’m sure you’ll be generous enough to share with us some of your fantastic photos as well. We’ll look forward to them.

    Happy Holidays, Happy Crystal Anniversary and Happy New Year, all in one!

    MarketFan

  47. …oops, sorry about that…the blog I meant was “Paris Breakfasts” not “Parisian Breakfasts”..

  48. Wow! You have the same anniv as my parents! They’re celebrating their 29th today. =P

    Happy Anniversary to you both! =)

  49. MM, you were probably too lovestruck not to remember what was served. I’m sure you were giddy from getting married, you didn’t even need the champagne. Ha ha.

  51. Awwww… speaking from a lurker’s point of view, this post showed a side of you, MM, which I don’t seem to have ever seen before (or “read” might be a more appropriate word.. hehe)

    You and Mrs MM are lucky to have each other! Congratulations and Happy Anniversary!!!

  52. Happy Anniversary MM and Mrs. MM..15 years of being together—I am just so inspired! wishing both of you many more years of love and friendship..

  55. Happy Anniversary MM and Mrs MM! That is an intricately beautiful wedding gown and an equally beautiful post. Sounds like MM is still in love after all these years. What a refreshing thing to hear in this day and age!

  56. Happy 15th wedding anniversary to you Marketman and the Mrs. Have many more wonderful meals and exciting trips together. Am in NY now, and the weather is quite pleasant, 40’s, although we expect some snow this weekend. Enjoy..update us on new finds in NYC…

  58. First of all, congratulations on the 15th!! I’m very curious if you have a special way of preserving the gown. You said you just took it out of its wrapper. No special storage box? I remember running into my grandma’s special dresses/gowns and my gosh, they used mothballs to “preserve” them and it reeked! Also, did you wear a barong or tux?

  62. Happy 15th Anniversary Mr and Mrs MM. Many more years to come!

    Wishing you both all the best…..Have a Prosperous New Year too!

  64. Happy anniversary Mr and Mrs MM!

    Wishing you many many many more years of abundant blessings!

    Live well, laugh often, love much.

  66. Happy Anniversary Mr & Mrs MM! More love, more blessings and good health to you and your family…always.
    Godbless!

  67. Happy 15th Anniversary MM and Mrs M! May all the blessing that you have for the past 15 years be more than doubled in the years to come! Congratulations!

  71. somehow my first greeting didn’t go through and i really don’t want to miss this opportunity to greet you and Mrs. MM a happy anniversary! here’s to more blissful years ahead!

  74. Happy Anniversary! The last line you wrote: “It seemed like a fairy tale then, and for many reasons, it still feels like a fairy tale today…” That is so sweet!

  75. Happy Anniversary! May you both have a long happy fulfilling life together.

    Oh and Happy New Year to you, your family, and your legions of readers.

  76. Happy Anniversary!!! What a coincidence. My best friend just got married on the 28th and my other best friend also celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary also on the 28th! Wishing you and Mrs. M and the kid many many happy years ahead.

  78. Awww… what a touching story, Mr. MM…
    Mrs. MM has a beautiful gown! I’ve never seen one as
    beautiful as hers.

    Happy Anniversary!

  79. MM — what a small world! I know your wife’s family very, very well. As a matter of fact, her maternal cousins and I grew up together. And she’s a twin!

    I just came back from Manila tonight! My sister will deliver something to your house as soon as she gets back from Boracay.

    The jam was superb!

  81. i agree…it ‘s absolutely heartwarming to have you share this part of your lives with your readers…one sees why you look at things the way you do…here’s to a lifetime more for you and Mrs MM and the Kid….this makes one teary eyed…

  82. happy anniv marketman! may your love for each other grow stronger and more passionate each day. :)

  83. Happy New Year MarketMan and family, and of course, Happy 15th anniversary to you and Mrs. MM..

    I guess the magical wedding just seems like yesterday..

  85. happy anniversary…. happy new year too….
    just came back from the exumas… now in nassau oh our chef from new york and we have been eating well here … enjoy NY

  86. What a beautiful elegant gown. Yes, such meticulous workmanship would be hard to find now in this day and age of cost-effective mass marketed goods. Although I am sure we can still have these items custom-made, it would be at a steep price. Well worth it, if you ask me. If one can afford it. Happy 15th anniversary!

    BTW, is anyone doing anything for local craftsmanship like what you are doing for local food?

  88. jun, thanks! Gwiz, I am not aware of a site for local craftmanship or handicrafts, but maybe there is one out there… welcome to the site. shalimar, don’t you get seasick? to all who sent kind greetings, maraming salamat! :)

  89. How late I am. That’s a lovely elegant gown and worth keeping. Here’s to more happy wedding anniversaries! I’m going to my 23 year.

  90. super belated happy anni! we celebrated our 18th last dec 15th:) december weddings have a charm all their own, don’t you think?

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