Going to the chapel..........

Well, you'd think I'd have learnt my lesson by now: I CANNOT NAP.

Returning from a fabulous Brisbane trip this morning, I finally gave in to sleep at 1pm and thought I'd just have a little snooze. Well, 6 hours later I woke up and guess who'll be star gazing tonight because she can't sleep??

The sole purpose of going to Brissie this week was for my mate Shane's wedding. We used to work together at the airport before I came to Dubai and I've heard so much about his lovely fiance, now wife, Lauren. I finally met her just days before the wedding and she was truly delightful. They have two gorgeous dogs and a beautiful house and are now enjoying an amazing honeymoon in Paris and Italy. Lucky pair!

The wedding was held at Sirromet Winery at Mt Cotton and it was a spectacular day. The weather forecast was for 30 degrees and a few showers, but the rain held off and the sun was shining.

Knowing no-one at the wedding besides the happy couple, I decided to take Jon of 'mangoes taste like sunshine' fame. We got all frocked up and were ready to go. This was AFTER a serious hair disaster. I'd decided to go long and curly, but who knew that the water in Brissie wasn't going to work with me? My hair was too dry and it ended up looking like bed hair and no amount of hair spray or bobby pins was going to make it look good. So, in the heat, I had to shower and wash it a second time, going through the blow drying and straightening all over again. Painful.



We made our way to the winery that was down a long scenic drive and I was delighted by the fact that it smelt like home and I was surrounded by real life bushland. My purple dress from the tailor was lovely in the sun and I must report that I'm very happy with the outcome. I'll report back about the blue one that's still in the works.

After a wine at the bar, we headed down to the laguna for the ceremony and were treated to pink champagne. A sleek black limo arrived and out got two beautiful bridesmaids in gorgeous green strapless gowns, followed by Lauren's Mum. Finally we got a glimpse of the bride as she stepped out. The crowd let out a gasp and her dad took her arm and they began the walk down the path. Lauren's Dad looked so proud and there was an incredibly tender moment when the wind blew her veil off her shoulder. He smiled at her, reached out and ever so gently set it back into place.



Shane's face when he saw her was priceless. The look of awe and love is something I'll never forget. She was a vision in a rich cream strapless gown and her hair was pulled back into a thick bun at the base of her neck. She arrived by his side and gazed up at him.

Throughout the ceremony, she mouthed 'I love you' and he stared at her adoringly. There were many more tender moments, but the most memorable was when they were holding hands and she lifted both his hands and kissed his fingertips. Never before have I seen something so loving.



I'm a sucker for romance and it was such a romantic day. When the vows were all said, the celebrant announced that the bride and groom had done something a little out of the ordinary with the taking of the name. Shane Colless and Lauren Wysen became Mr and Mrs Colsen. There were smiles all round and the photos taken against the backdrop of the winery and the mountains will no doubt be stunning.

Platters of cheese and fruit were consumed on the lawn while children played and then it was time for the reception. We moved inside and were treated to the most amazing three course meal and fantastic wines. The speeches were beautiful, with Lauren's Dad saying the most touching things about his daughter. There was a slide show and Shane's speech was spectacular. They're so in love and it's beautiful to see two people so delighted in each other's company.

The day however wouldn't have been complete without something typical of my clumsiness. I managed to knock an entire glass of delicious red wine all over Jon's placemat, get dessert on his sleeve and a bit of pork of my dress. You'd have been forgiven for thinking I was drunk, but I wasn't. Just clumsy Lonnie as usual.

There was dancing and merriment all round and it was truly a pleasure to have been invited to such an intimate, beautiful wedding.

The rest of the trip back was spent sleeping in Singapore and attempting to be the galley operator again. The only word to describe my previous attempt on the way into Brisbane would be WOEFUL. I totally win the 'woeful of the week' award. I also got the pleasure of being lumped with Duty Free, which mean I had a pouchful of money to tote around for the entire trip and stress over where I'd put it. I freaked out when someone actually wanted to BUY something and then the computer broke! All rather laughable now.

After a stint in First Class, I've decided that I'm content with Business for now. The passengers were rude and picky and heinously self-righteous. I guess you can be when you've paid so much money for a crappy chair on the crappy old Boeing 777. They really just look like over sized business class seats really. So not special in any way. However, there was NO excuse for one 'gentleman' who refused to speak to me because he couldn't get his videotape into the side of his chair. The loser didn't realise that there was another tape ALREADY IN THERE and wouldn't listen to me trying to tell him so. He instructed his wife to tell 'this girl' that he wouldn't be speaking to her until she'd sorted the problem out. So with feathers ruffled, I took great pleasure in telling him that he'd have to wait till the aircraft video played and THEN I could 'deal with it'.

Anyway, they all finally went to sleep and we feasted on brie cheese and lobster in the galley!

I managed to get a picture of me next to our massive engine once we landed back into Dubai, but wasn't allowed to actually get IN it as it was still slowly spinning. I tell you, I'm never normally one to wish a Brissie trip to be over, but I've never been so glad to touch down in Dubai this morning.




I'm headed home in less than two weeks for some holidays and can't wait to catch up with everyone I didn't get to see this time. And also for another cuddle with my cats!