Leon proposed and we're engaged!

After a few months of hustling with the new shop, we decided to take a short break to relax.
Unlike other trips, this time I wanted a place in Malaysia with good buffet breakfast and a little bit isolated from the town. A place that is reachable without taking a flight. I find airport trips tiring and time consuming.
After some research, Pangkor Laut Resort stood out from the rest. Mainly because we know it is well managed and for sure we are going to feel very comfortable. This resort even has a spa village that offers a wide range of massages. Perfect.

Our villa by the hill. We can see sunrise from here!

Initially Leon wanted to book us a water villa but I have some phobia with it so eventually we picked the one on the hill.

Accommodation, meals and activities are all in my expectations. I had the itinerary at the back of my mind. What I didn't expect was a marriage proposal during this trip.

There's this bay with a million dollar sunset view in Pangkor Laut Resort. We didn't have time to visit there on our first day so we spent our late afternoon on the second day. When we arrived, the bay was half-filled with visitors. It was a weekday so the resort wasn't on full occupancy. Everyone was waiting for the sun to set. After the shuttle bus dropped us, we walked on the sandy beach to the bar, picked our beach benches and settled down with some fruit juices.

About 20 minutes later, Leon started to persuade me to go to the other end of the beach. I was all comfy on the bench, took a glimpse at the corner he wanted me to go and I said "Why go there? Nothing there what...."
He then came up with alot of reasons on why we should go there.

"Just walk around, turn back and smile!" Fuh, all of the sudden he is an expert in posing.
"That spot is nicer for photos. I wanna take some nice photos of you."
Ok, it's very rare of him to offer to take nice photos for me. I was convinced, got up and walked over there.

The sun was about to set. After some shots here and there, we sat down on the sand to admire the beauty of sunset.


One of the shots. Love the silhouette!

After a few minutes, he wanted to check out the rocks so he got up and walked to the back.
I'm not so adventurous so I remained seated, do what I do best, stare into the blank and feel the moment.

Little did I know that he was actually setting up the camera on a low tree branch.

He came back shortly and started to talk about us, how long we've dated and all.
Sometimes he likes to get serious, talk about our relationship and evaluate our growth so I didn't suspect anything at all.

"That is why I am going to do this now." He said while pulling out a jewelry box from his pocket, opened it and revealed a very beautiful necklace with sapphire and diamonds pendant.
I thought "Awwww, a present for me!"

Then he got up, knelt down, closed the box and opened it again.
With a very serious stare into my eyes, he said "Will you marry me?"

Alot of things went through my mind - is this really a proposal? or he is just being random? why didn't he kneel down in the first place?

Now I find this part is really funny.
He probably rehearsed this moment a thousand times in his mind.
When it finally came, he got too nervous and mixed up the sequence.
I was expecting some heartfelt speech before he popped the question. Well that's what all movies and proposal videos showed me! But nope, this guy here just waited for my answer.

"Oooookay, yes!" I can't stop smiling. It was not what I've imagined but this is him. Nothing fancy, very sincere and staying true to himself.

It was after he put the necklace on me, he held my hand and said something really romantic.

He proposed without flowers, no balloons or fireworks but a very beautiful sunset. 
That is something you cannot stage. I love the moment so much.

You can see all the actions in this video. The original one was 18 minutes long because the hotel staff came up and congratulated us after that. That's where I realised we're being watched the whole time!


When I posted the photo of the proposal, many friends asked "Who took your photo?!" 

Well, when he booked the stay, he communicated with the Guests Relation Officer, Naomi, and informed her about his plan. She & her colleagues have been anticipating this moment as soon as we arrived the bay. When he was setting up the camera, they were doing their job behind me -- secretly and politely told all the visitors around us to give us the space because he is going to propose. No wonder other couples slowly left and we had the entire spot to ourselves!
That's very sweet of them to make sure we have unforgettable and uninterrupted moments.

Naomi is a tall, sweet and young French lady.
She was a trainee at the resort.
Our last day at Pangkor Laut was her last day too. 
She told us how we made her day and happy with her work. She even had our engagement photo printed and framed, gave it to us as our departure gift. 

We know we deserve good hospitality from a 5 stars resort but personally, their gestures were overwhelmingly great. 
We had a really good time and left with good feelings.

They took this photo for us too!

Now that I am thinking about our stay there, Leon almost gave it out on our first night.
After our dinner, we came back to our room made and the door to bedroom was closed. I didn't expect room service during dinner hours so I thought we have some intruders.

"No lah, maybe they did the flowers." He said.
"What flowers??" I got even more confused.
"Errrr nothing. Just open the door lah!"

Nothing was added except a very well made bed.

The night after the proposal, we came back to our room and the doors were shut too.
I opened them with no hesitation and this.
THIS WAS ON OUR BED.


CHEESIEST THING EVER. I cannot believe this kind of flower petals with towel origami swan is happening on us.

I turned around and saw Leon looking very proud. He was expecting me to cry I guess?
Instead of going awwwww, I laughed so hard and made him posed with that set up.
He said my reaction was mean. 
Come on, it's so cliché!!!

Still, I truly appreciate the effort of hotel staff to get this done while we were out. It was beautiful. Took me an hour before I destroy them.
Leon feeling proud.

The proposal wasn't exactly a surprise-surprise because I know sooner or later, the day will come.
Yes, we've talked about getting married someday because we are very comfortable with each other. In fact, two years into our relationship, we've brought up the topic of marriage because we want to be clear on our expectations.
Yes, we argued alot and at some points we were at the edge of breaking up but every time, we made up.

I've always wondered how a guy who prefers privacy like Leon will do his proposal. Definitely not somewhere in the public or even in front of close friends, a place where it is just the both of us. He was never a romantic guy that will send flowers or arrange romantic dinners on anniversaries.
I got worried for him because I am afraid that I'll get disappointed with his arrangements so I was quite open on my preference and how I like it to be done.

Among my hates are expensive overpriced flowers and cheesy public proposal. I also told him clearly I am not a big fan of diamond engagement ring because I read about how diamonds are exploited by marketers to be the only gem for proposal. Also, they are overpriced. Well, most of the jewelries are overpriced. It depends on how you value it. I'm not saying diamonds are bad. Who will say no to diamonds?! Just not a fan of diamond engagement ring.

On the other hand, I love sapphire. It's blue, it's brilliant and it's my birth stone. 
Sapphire also has a legend about how a blue eyed cat protected it's owner from evil. I love this story because our cat, Shiro, has mesmerizing blue eyes.

This is the necklace. (See that I reuse the petals to take photo?)

After that we got it change into a ring because my mom commented that a ring is more symbolic than a necklace.

(Oh then I found out, Prince William actually gave Kate Middleton a sapphire & diamond ring as engagement ring! Feeling royal now LOL!)

That's it. The proposal -- a memory that lasts a lifetime.

Now I'll end the post with some photos:
He finally found time to finish his book!

They even provide these cute woven bags for guests to carry around!

A nice touch to the landscape.
Outdoor massage gazebo. 

They have warm porridge on the breakfast buffet spread. Perfect.


US :)

Comments

Popular Posts