After several months of planning, Vamsi and Meredith left on a trip of a lifetime to Vietnam right after Christmas 2016. They started their trip with little rest and lots of site seeing around South Vietnam visiting the Imperial City, tons of temples in Hue, a few infamous war landmarks, and an ancient cluster of Hindu temples from the 4th century in the deep forests.
Both wanted to see everything, which seems to always be their goal when they travel. They were having a wonderful time seeing a glimpse of the culture, history, and of course eating a lot of amazing Vietnamese food!
Vamsi found a boutique hotel for them to stay in Hoi An, a historic port city. It was such a lovely place, covered in beautiful lanterns that glowed at night.
They recall walking along the river that ran through the town with all the glowing lanterns as dreamlike. They also went to the market several times, so Meredith could see and try all the tropical fruits and vegetables. The city was charming. Much like they had expected, the weather was a bit rainy. For most of their outings they wore a poncho or rain jacket. Which also meant everything was constantly wet. Vamsi had this one canvas messenger bag that he wouldn’t set down, the first day of the trip it got soaked and as the days progressed it started to smell and he still wouldn’t put it down. Meredith first assumed it was his camera he was protecting, now she realizes it was a small piece of jewelry he was guarding with his stinky bag.
Five days into the trip came one of their favorite holidays, New Years Eve. Chinese New Year was a bigger holiday for Vietnam, then the western NYE, but with all the other tourists, Hoi An adopted NYE traditions and the whole town was celebrating. Their little hotel planned out a special dinner for all their guests that had wine, music, and a massive buffet. It was raining, but that didn’t stop Vamsi & Meredith from a full night of fun. After dinner they went and watch a team of traditional Vietnamese dancers perform with a huge countdown to midnight!
At this point is when Meredith thought if he was going to ask me to marry him it would be at this moment. SURPRISE…. he didn’t do it then. So once the new year struck, they decided to just start the new year by dancing until dawn!
On New Years Day, Vamsi told Meredith they had to move hotels because the hotel was overbooked. So after a late check out, they packed up pretty tired from the night before and got in a cab to go to their new hotel. When the driver asked where we were going, Vamsi replied Palm Garden Resort and they driver said WOW! After hearing that reaction, Meredith and got a rush of excitement!!
They pulled up to the hotel, and immediately understood why the driver reacted that way. The hotel was magnificent. They were dropped off and greeted by bell hops ready to get their bags. To check in to the hotel, they were met in a seated area with tea and ginger candy. The hotel receptionist sat down and started talking about the hotel and their stay. She started talking about a fancy dinner plan that Vamsi kept dismissing. She also gave spa coupons and again mentioned the fancy dinner. While Vamsi & Meredith were walking to their room, Meredith asked Vamsi what the receptionist was talking about with the “fancy dinner” and he dismissed it as just another normal dinner they were just trying to make fancy. Which Meredith completely believed because their last hotel did the same thing for the New Years Eve dinner.
Their room had french doors that opened up to a breathtaking view of the ocean. With the sea breeze, the beautiful hotel, and still being exhausted from the night of dancing Vamsi & Meredith decided to nap until dinner. While they were getting ready for dinner, they got excited because the rain had finally given up for the evening. So Vamsi suggested they do a little photo shoot on the beach. He set up his tripod and they started a series of pictures. This is a very typical activity they do at new places, Vamsi would go up to the camera, set the timer and run into place quickly as the red dot blinked. They did this several times before he went to set the camera and as he started walking back, Meredith noticed the red light wasn’t blinking and right before she could say anything Vamsi started professing his love for her. She was caught off guard, it was lovely and she started to cry. He had recorded the proposal, but his profession of love was drowned out by the ocean waves and sea winds in the recording. Of course Meredith said YES and was in awe of the beautiful ring Vamsi had designed.
Well if you were wondering what that fancy dinner was about, it truly was a once in a lifetime type of dinner. Vamsi had coordinated a private candle lit dinner for them to start celebrating their engagement. She felt so special and happy that she didn’t think the night could get any better. Until, two musicians walk up and start playing Cold Play’s Amazing Day, which is now their song. The night was perfect and once they got to the room, they started calling all of their family to share the exciting news. Vamsi planned everything so well with a proposal that will never be forgotten!
Mersi Gets Married 
Leave a comment