Monday, October 12, 2009

A Dream Wedding Venue


Discovering Splendido was one of the highlights of our 2008. After getting engaged on 168 (January 6, 2008),we excitedly took a trip to Tagaytay to scout for a wedding venue. Since we both love the outdoors, we planned on having a garden wedding. I particularly wanted to get married in a lush garden fronting a sprawling golf course. We looked at possible venues the whole day, but were not quite satisfied with what we found.  
As we were driving back to Manila at dusk, a thought popped into my mind. Out of the blue, I blurted out to my fiance, “Sa Splendido na lang tayo (Let's get married in Splendido).” At that time, I didn't have an inkling what Splendido looked liked or if it was even open for weddings. The last time I saw the place was in 2004 when it was under still construction. At that time, some friends and I just happened to pass by Splendido on our way to Batangas and we parked near the sales office to stretch our legs. That was my only encounter with the place.






 It must have been It must God whispering a wonderful secret to us for the very next day, I surfed the net and was all too delighted to find that Splendido is actually a golf club and, more than that, it is fast becoming a popular wedding destination! I called their trunkline right away and reserved a date even though we haven't seen the place.
And when I asked if we could have a wedding on the golf course, assistant marketing supervisor Noel immediately informed us that they actually have a nursery just right behind the golf course where we could have the wedding.




The Splendido nursery is an elevated diamond-shaped garden beside a man-made lake. To go there,you have to walk or drive a golf cart through a path that would give you a stunning view of the greens. Then, you go up a flight of thoughtfully placed cobbled stones steps. The view is simply breath-taking. It was the perfect place for us--large enough to accommodate our 250 guests yet small enough to get that intimate feel that we wanted for the ceremony. Really a dream come true!


Another revelation was the food! Not only was it reasonable, it was a heavenly fare. Later on, I found out that the kitchen is headed by Chef Ed Quimson and Chef Tristan Bayani two of the most promising chefs we have in the country. When we requested for a customized menu to fit our budget, they gladly gave in. To be practical, we decided to get mini-cakes instead of the usual wedding cake with only one edible layer. Splendido's pastry bar baked such deliciously decadent and eye-catching cakes for us that made us wished we took a second serving during the cake-cutting.



During the course of the preparations, we called on Noel, Jonna, newly appointed marketing supervisor Cherry and restaurant supervisor Bomel time and again for changes and what-have-yous, and they were very accommodating. Noel was always on hand to answer questions. I appreciate how he listened and answered questions when my mom checked out the place two weeks before the ceremony. When I asked Cherry for help with the VIP place cards, she volunteered to do it for us, even though it wasn't part of the package. Bomel with his bubbly personality is just so conscientious and passionate about his job. He took very good care of us during all our meetings and went out of his way to grant our every request.He made us feel confident that everything would work out well on our day. I'm so glad he personally drove my wedding cart to the ceremony.


Our wedding day was such an answered prayer and a dream come true. A few minutes before the ceremony, it actually drizzled. Guests had to be transported back from the greens to the club house. Dark clouds loomed directly ahead and some of our guests and sponsors panicked. Despite the gloomy scenario, the whole staff believed and prayed with us that the weather would clear. A few minutes later, our prayers were answered. Not only did we have our wedding at the Splendido Nursery with nary a hitch, God even gifted us with a glorious sunset as the ceremony concluded Moreover, there wasn't a drop of rain the whole night as we partied away during the reception.


It's been a year since our October 2008 wedding. We still reminisce about the whole experience almost every day and we can't stop thanking God for Splendido. It's a place we know we will always come back to.


We received this note from Splendido's CEO last Oct. 8, 2009:



1 comment:

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