Chloe

While having a relaxing time in Maui - we also decided to do some recreational activity. And by that I mean we took a seat and let another animal do all the work. We went for a morning horse ride along the coast through some pretty lush trails. The Girl was a little freaked out at first until she was provided with a docile beast, named Lucky, that was content to plod along at a very subtle pace. My gorgeous steed Chloe was on her maiden ride after just being broken in. She really wanted to get some speed up which I certainly wasn't adverse to. In that short amount of time it kind of felt like we really bonded and certainly wanted to keep her. There is something pretty thrilling about riding a magnificent animal that can offer you (at least partial) control, and yet the potential to fell you in a heartbeat. After all, a horse took down Superman!

The Road to Hana

The Hana Highway is a 68 mile stretch of road that stood between us and our destination. The highway is a complex route of winding, narrow passes including 59 bridges, many dating back to 1910, 46 of which are only one lane wide. The beast contains approximately 620 curves, that winds through a radiant tropical rain forest. The guide said it would take us over 3 hours to navigate. We conquered it in around 2. Without the traffic and a precious wife beside me, I'm sure I could have got this down well under the 2hr mark.

The Playlist

Here is the playlist from the whole wedding day:

Pre-Ceremony:

1.       Talisman / Air

2.       Redford (For Yia-Yia & Pappou) / Sufjan Stevens

3.       Release (edited) / Pearl Jam

4.       La Femme D’Argent / Air

5.       Utopia (Genetically Enriched) / Goldfrapp

6.       Lower Your Eyelids to Die with the Sun / M83

Bride Entrance:

1.       La Vie en Rose / The Mantovani Orchestra

Post-Ceremony:

1.       Sweet Disposition / The Temper Trap

2.       The Best Thing / Boom Crash Opera

3.       Fix You / Coldplay

4.       Chloe Dancer-Crown of Thorns / Mother Love Bone

Beverages & Canapes:

1.       Milestones / Miles Davis

2.       Release / Solar Stone (Paul Oakenfold remix)

3.       The Sad Piano / Justin Martin

4.       I Feel Like / Freemasons feat. Amanda Wilson

5.       Duel of Fates / John Williams

6.       Lola’s Theme / Shapeshifters (Ministry of Sound remix)

7.       Finished Symphony / Hybrid

8.       Make You Feel My Love / Adele

9.       Graceland / Paul Simon

10.    Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down / Alicia Keys

11.    Fairytale of New York (Feat. Kristy MacColl) / The Pogues

12.    Your Woman / White Town

13.    We Are the People / Empire of the Sun

14.    Nightminds / Missy Higgins (Ministry of Sound - Chillout Session 6)

15.    Need You Tonight / Mylo (Ministry of Sound - Chillout Session 6)

16.    Feelin’ Alright / Toby Neal (Ministry of Sound - Chillout Session 6)

17.    Don’t Give Up (feat. Bryan Adams) / Chicane

18.    You Got the Love (New Voyager Mix feat. Candi Staton)  / The Source

19.    Things Can Only Get Better / D:Ream

20.    American Dream / Jakatta

21.    Pjanoo / Eric Prydz

22.    The Gift / Pryda

23.    All I Need / Air

24.    Wait / Alexi Murdoch

25.    Lesson One / Pryda

26.    Rymd / Pryda

27.    M.S.B.O.Y (Original Mix) / Pryda

Bridal Party Entrance:

1.       Sirius / The Alan Parsons Project

Entrance Dance (Tango):

1.       Ella es asi / Edgardo Donato y Sus Muchachos & Horacio Lagos

Dinner Service:

1.       Exogenesis Symphony Part 1 (Overture) / Muse

2.       Exogenesis Symphony Part 3 (Redemption) / Muse

3.       The Asteroid Field / John Williams

4.       Nothingman / Pearl Jam

5.       Midnight Cowboy / Faith No More

6.       Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness / Smashing Pumpkins

7.       Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy / Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker

8.       New York State of Mind / Billy Joel

9.       0078h / M83

10.     Alpha Male / Royksopp

11.     Patience / George Michael

12.     Betterman / Pearl Jam

13.     Dance of the Reed Pipes / Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker

14.     End Credits (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) / John Williams

15.     Guitar & Flute String / Moby

16.     No One Like You / Sarah Brightman and the London Symphony Orchestra

17.     Track 13 / Bush

18.     Sunset and Vine / Charlatans

19.     Salt Water / Chicane

20.     I Remember / Deadmau5 & Kaskade

21.     Zdarlight / Digitalism

22.     Sway / Dean Martin

23.     Can’t Help Falling In Love / Elvis Presley

24.     Christmas Lights / Nina Gordon

25.     Penguin / Avicii

26.     Ashes to Ashes (Automatic 5 Dub) / Faith No More

27.     Friendship Update / The Go! Team

First Dance (Slow Dance):

1.       The Way You Look Tonight / Fred Astaire

Dancing:

2.       Amazing / George Michael

3.       Nu Disco / Moguai

4.       If You Were There / Wham!

5.       Just Can’t Get Enough / Depeche Mode

6.       My Delirium / Ladyhawke

7.       When Love Takes Over / David Guetta

8.       Viva la Vida / Coldplay

9.       Sweet Home Alabama / Lynyrd Skynyrd

10.    Barbara Streisand / Duck Sauce

11.     Bohemian Like You / The Dandy Warhols

12.     Buck Rogers / Feeder

13.     We Are Young / Music Magnet

14.     Take On Me / a-Ha

15.     Young Blood / The Naked & Famous

16.     Ruby / Kaiser Chiefs

17.     If (feat. Hazel Fernandez) / Freemasons

18.     Golden Years / David Bowie

19.     Monkey Wrench / Foo Fighters

20.     Can’t Buy Me Love / The Beatles

21.     Ooh La La / Goldfrapp

22.     The Reflex / Duran Duran

23.     New Sensation / INXS

24.     Billie Jean / Michael Jackson

25.     Valerie / Amy Winehouse

26.     Burning Love / Elvis Presley

27.     Bodyrock / Moby

28.     I’ll Be There For You / The Rembrandts

29.     The Bends / Radiohead

30.     A Little Party Never Killed Anybody (All We Got) / Fergie, Q-Tip & GoonRock

31.     Where Everybody Knows Your Name (Cheers Theme) / Gary Portnoy & Judy Hart Angel

32.     Blue Monday / New Order

33.     Blind Faith / Chase & Status

34.     Are You Gonna Go My Way / Lenny Kravitz

35.     Never Tear Us Apart / INXS

36.     Lola’s Theme / The Shapeshifters

37.     Wonderwall / Oasis

38.     Ready Steady Go (feat. Asher D) / Paul Oakenfold

39.     Sunsets / Powerfinger

40.     UFO / Sneaky Sound System

41.     Brown Eyed Girl / Van Morrison

42.     London Still / The Waifs

43.     Toca’s Miracle / Fragma

44.     You’ve Got The Love / Florence + The Machine

45.     I Love It / Sneaky Sound System

46.     Paris Is Burning / Ladyhawke

47.     Theme from ‘New York, New York’ / Frank Sinatra

The New Traveling Companion

On the way back to Australia for the wedding, The Girl and I found a new travelling companion that we want to take with us everywhere. Her wedding dress. We carried this with us on the plane and everything from our flight upgrades, to free bottles of champagne were offered to us. People seemed to take great joy in spoiling us. I guess we had a pre-wedding glow about us as well, but I kind of figured we could certainly reproduce these results for the next couple of years by simply carrying the dress on all our travels.

What I thought was the coolest - the coathanger had boobs to keep the dress in shape!

18 and counting....

The guys I work with are a great crack and the last month has been a bond henchman style countdown to the Girl and my nuptials. In a deep monotone voice, "18 and counting" was this mornings greeting. I think it is pretty cool that they actually worked out how many days left and remember to let me know every day. Here is a clip if you're unfamiliar with the countdown:

This is my favourite scene from any Bond movie. The music, the offshore rig, the henchmen and the countdown make this a classic. But most of all, I absolutely love the final swan dive...