Singapore — File this under “the rich live very differently from the rest of us mere mortals”.
While $2,000,000 may not quite approach the GDP of a small state, it’s simply the estimated cost of gifts lavished on billionaire heiress Kim Lim at her guo da li (过大礼), or traditional Chinese betrothal ceremony.
Still, “extravagant” barely begins to do justice to the treasure trove from Ms Lim’s fiance.
Ms Lim, 30, is the daughter of Singaporean business magnate Peter Lim. She is a philanthropist and the founder of two aesthetic clinics. This will be her second marriage.
She and her fiancé, identified only by his initials “LL”, got engaged last September. And while photos of the happy couple have graced her Instagram account, little is known about her intended. He is said to be 33 and in the IT industry and the pair have been friends for some time.
Judging from photos taken of Feb 16’s guo da li, LL doesn’t hold back when it comes to his bride-to-be.
Tatler Asia reports that he arrived at her father’s home “with a lion dance entourage, complete with two lions, a God of Fortune mascot, and a Chinese boy and girl mascot, which presumably represents the both of them”.
Now for the gifts: 15 gold bars, eight pairs of dragon and phoenix bracelets, two gold necklaces with rings and earrings, Rolex watches, Hermès bags and other little luxuries, plus the traditional Chinese wedding kua.
Then there’s the food. The gifts included cakes from Creme Maison bakery decorated with gold phoenixes and dragons, kueh-kueh flecked with gold leaf from Atlas Handcrafted, canned delicacies, wine, sweets and fruits, and seafood and other delicacies in lacquer boxes.
Ms Lelian Chew of The Wedding Atelier and The Floral Atelier, who helped plan the guo da li, provided more details in an Instagram story that the bride-to-be shared.
The wedding planner’s list goes on to include “188 of the freshest apples for a peaceful marriage, a pair of the rarest vino to delight a father-in-law, 288 tiers of freshly bakes sweet cakes to share with their nearest and dearest (who were unable to be there given the current climate) and so much more. Tens of thousands of items each handpicked by L, adorned with the appropriate design detail, each bearing its unique auspicious blessings for the impending marriage.”
Reading all this, one realises that the $2 million price tag is hardly surprising.
On Instagram on Feb 17, Ms Chew posted a video of the couple at the ceremony, and the array of red, gold and pink is truly dazzling.
She captioned it by writing, “Starting K&L off the right way. The grandest 过大礼圆满礼成!”
/TISG
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