Why is it that the word 'Wedding' automatically adds $$$ to the cost of things? This weekend we went up to Noosa for a wedding fayre.  Yes, you would be right in thinking that attending a wedding fayre is is not in my top 5 things to do on a Sunday.  However, sensing that I would immediately come up with some convenient excuse not to go, Rachelle offered a suitable bribe - she would pay for us to stay the night before at the hotel where it was being held.  I didn't know anything about this hotel, except that it's called the Noosa Springs Golf Resort and Spa.  Sounded good to me!

We drove up there Saturday afternoon in torrential rain, in our car which is now missing the front registration plate after some thieving rascal had taken it whilst it was parked outside a RSL club the night before.  It's an offence to drive around without it but there was no way we were going to go through the rigmarole Saturday morning of getting it replaced, which involves getting a police crime number and then going to Queensland Transport to arrange for a new one and hoping we can simply get a replacement without having to re-register the car with a completely new rego (we're still sorting this out so as of writing I don't know the answer to this).

Anyway... we somehow managed to make it up there without getting stopped by the police or being swept away in the rain.  We didn't really have any plans for when we got there, except that we wanted to go for a nice meal Saturday night to celebrate the fact that it was the 2 year anniversary of our arrival in Australia.  Given the weather, and the fact that the hotel restaurant has good reviews from what I could tell, we expected to eat there.  However, on arriving we were told that the restaurant wasn't open that night due to the Wedding Fayre the following day.  How ridiculous.  So our choice was to go out, or order a takeaway, except, unlike most resorts of this kind with individual apartments, there were no takeaway menus in the room.

We braved the weather conditions and went out.  Our first choice was to go to an Italian we had been to before and really enjoyed on our first trip to Australia.  I can't remember what it was called but it was in Sunshine Beach.  I say 'was' because when we got there we discovered it was no longer there.  We then drove to Hastings St in Noosa, the famous street in Noosa where most tourists head to for restaurants and boutique shops.  Unfortunately when we got there it was hammering it down even more, we couldn't get parked up outside a restaurant and because we hadn't brought any brollies there was no way I was going to get Rach and Lauren to run from the car park to the nearest restaurant.

We gave up and ended up going for a KFC followed by the movies where we watched Night at the Museum 2.  Wasn't quite the evening we had planned but we enjoyed it nonetheless.  Night at the Museum 2 was good family fun and you can't go far wrong with a belly full of the colonel's chicken!

As for the wedding fayre, it wasn't that bad as these things go.  There was plenty of champagne and wedding cake to try.  And I experienced my first ever catwalk fashion show.  I must admit though that I did blush a little when the models came out in skimpy lingerie (at which point Lauren attempted to cover my eyes).  I wasn't expecting that, I thought it would just be the wedding gowns.

The problem with these wedding fayres of course is that it gives the bride-to-be ideas.  I don't think my idea of getting married at a public BBQ area and asking everyone to bring a bottle and some snags is going to wash anymore!  I was walking around the vendors displaying their wares at the wedding fayre and all the time I was thinking 'HOW MUCH?'.  I really begrudge paying that much for 100 photographs and DVD when I reckon I could get copies of the guest's photo's and knock up something decent in Photoshop and iMovie.  Similarly, why pay stupid amounts of money for a wedding cake when I can go to Dunkin' Donuts and buy a load of donuts and arrange them in some kind of fancy tower?

One of the first stands we visited was displaying wedding jewelery, attended by a man and a woman.  While the woman was showing Rachelle the jewellery, the guy gave me a handy little card with a checklist of items that I should remember to purchase Rach for her special day.  How thoughtful.  The list read as follows:

  • Pair of diamond stups & hoops - simple and classic
  • Diamond ring - forever in style
  • Pearl necklace - stylish and elegant
  • Pearl earrings - to match of course
  • Dress ring - for that special occasion
  • Gold bangle - for everyday style
  • Gold chain - from day to evening
  • Gold bracelet - elegant adornment everyday
  • Diamond & gem stone pendant - touch of colour
  • Dress watch - personal fashion statement

Jesus christ!  I've told Rach that I'll commit to the wedding ring but she doesn't need the rest as I don't want to marry Mr T.  If lucky, she may get a pearl necklace on the honeymoon ;-) Sorry, have I gone too far?

We somehow have to compromise between me preferring to spend money on the stag night and honeymoon, and the expense of the so-called dream wedding.  Luckily Rachelle has always been a 'cheap date' and with a good head on her shoulders she realises like me that it's stupid to spend $20,000 on one day (which I here is about average these days).  That's not to say it won't be good day. It will. It's just we may be making some cost savings here and there.  Another idea of mine is to have a nude wedding, that way we don't have to shell out for a wedding dress, bridesmaids dress or my suit.  Rachelle seems to think nobody wants to see that and some members of our family might not be keen.