雙喜臨門：異國的完美生活

Our hometowns share an ocean， but are on different continents. We both celebrate a new year， but at a different time. We both have parents， but only one of us has siblings.

I can tell the story of how Fei and I met in two languages. This type of meeting is called“YuanFen”， which depicts that by fate or destiny two people come together.

Like most foreigners here I began my journey as an exchange student in June 2010. At the same time Fei agreed to help his friend by teaching a class on Business in China. Fei studied and lived in Dublin， Ireland for nine years. When we met it was not in Canada， it was not in Ireland， nor was it in Fei’s hometown of Qingdao. We met in a small suburb outside the city， in an old classroom on the 6th floor.

In class we exchanged cards and arranged to meet later on. We went with several friends for a dinner of roast duck， which led to night market shopping， and later an intimate pot of blue mountain coffee shared between the two of us. After coffee I followed like a puppy to watch a football match in a pub even though I had never been a fan.

The next day I left for Xi’an. It was painful leaving but the 1）Terracotta warriors， Yangzte River， and Three Gorges Dam all distracted me for a little while. As I traveled throughout China we kept in contact every day via text message. Through these short but meaningful first messages we 2）subtly developed our relationship.

We met in a classroom， bonded over coffee， and spent only one week together in Qingdao， China before I had to fly home to Canada. Across the distance our relationship grew closer and commitment solidified.

Today we work side-by-side creating weddings and events here in Qingdao. Everyday we share a cup of coffee together， we make jokes and laugh in both languages， and when I am not at home working we are often crazily texting each other about some little wedding detail or 3）color combination.

It feels surreal to think that my small exchange student opportunity has opened up this entire new world. I am fluent in Chinese， married to a wonderful husband， and we are both building our careers and future together everyday.

It’s quite complicated how we came to be in the wedding industry. After we were 4）engaged we of course began to think about how to arrange and coordinate an international wedding party. We also went to check out a few of the local wedding planners. At first I saw their weddings and just didn’t really understand why there was such a huge T-shaped stage， many different colored lights， and aisle decorations that were nearly touching the ceiling. I thought to myself this isn’t the wedding that I imagined and just doesn’t feel right.

So after some trials and 5）tribulations， and meeting the right people， in May 2011 we had our first wedding client （a friend of a friend of course）. Our first wedding was an amazing （and frustrating） learning experience about the difference between Western and Chinese style weddings. I learned very quickly that creating hand-made seating arrangements for 300+ people just did not work！

One year later， I had the chance to design and create our own wedding. I wanted to give my Chinese family and friends the experience of what a western style wedding is like. We were married by the sea， in the yard of a 100 year old building. We ate delicious steak and drank wine， we danced， we ate cake， and we drank some more… It was the best day of my life， and Fei agrees it was his too.

Our company is growing， we are learning so much everyday and being challenged in every way possible. I feel honored that I can help other brides and grooms create the same wonderful memories that we had from our wedding day.

我倆的故鄉瀕臨同一片海洋，卻位于不同的大洲之上。我們都會慶祝新年，卻是在不同的時間。我們都有父母雙親，但我們之中僅有一個擁有兄弟姐妹。

我能夠用兩種語言講述我與飛是如何相遇的故事。這種相遇被稱作“緣分”，描述的是兩個人命中注定要在一起。

跟這里大多數的外國人一樣，2010年6月，作為一名交換生，我開始了我的旅程。在同一時間，飛答應幫助其友人在中國教授一門商科課程。飛在愛爾蘭的都柏林市學習、生活了九年。我們相遇時并不是在加拿大，也不是在愛爾蘭，更不是在飛的故鄉青島。我們相遇在小城郊某個位于六樓的舊教室里。

課堂上，我們交換了名片，約了稍后見面。我們與幾個朋友同行，晚餐去吃烤鴨，飯后自然而然地去了夜市逛街，之后我倆分享了一壺親密的藍山咖啡。喝完咖啡，我像條小狗一樣跟到酒館看了場足球比賽，盡管我從來都不是個球迷。

第二天我出發去了西安。離開挺痛苦的，但是兵馬俑、長江和三峽大壩全都讓我分了會兒神。我在中國各地旅行時，我們每天都通過手機短訊保持聯系。通過這些簡短卻有意義的開初短訊，我們情愫暗長。

在我必須飛回故鄉加拿大之前，我們在一個教室里碰面，因咖啡而生情，在中國青島共處的時間也只有一周。跨洋過海，我們的關系變得更加親密，承諾也穩固了。

如今，我們一同在青島工作，做婚慶策劃活動。每天，我們都一起分享一杯咖啡，我們用中英文講笑話，分享笑聲，而當我不在家工作的時候，我們時常瘋狂地給彼此發關于婚禮小細節或者配色的短訊息。……