This morning i email Dr Phua after reading raves about him in singapore brides forum. I emailed him, and he reply by email very fast. After i reply with my contacts, he called and discuss with me the basic things. He is really very friendly on the phone. =D
Some reviews about him:
Review 1:
Hi all, we had our solemnization in end-May and are gratful to have Dr. Phua as our solemnizer. We came to know about Dr. Phua through our wedding planner who highly recommended him for all their clients.
As mentioned by many, Dr. Phua is a very friendly and humourous person. I was nervous about giving him a reminder call before our wedding cos I couldn't find a way which I feel comfortable to put it across. When I finally picked up my courage, he could not be contacted so I left him a message in his office voice mail. Later that day, he returned my call. After I introduced myself, he didn't not wait for me to come to the part I dreaded most, instead he asked, "So, are you prepared for your wedding on XX day at XX time?" Then he procceeded to light chat a bit which made me laugh and I grew to like him even though we haven't met.
Our solemnisation was held during the banquet in the present of all guests and was conducted in both English and Mandarin. I agree with others that Dr. Phua is stronger in Mandarin (but he is effectively bilingual, so no worries). Unlike most solemnisers who follow a formal script, Dr. Phua peppered the whole ceremony with humour and made everybody chuckle. His session is a bit long tho'... it took us about 35 mins. Think ours started a bit late yet Dr. Phua went on unhurriedly after completing all the formalities, giving us advice on how to maintain a good marriage (tho' some guests started to get a little restless as they couldn't wait for the banquet to start :P ).
For us, we did our own vows and Dr. Phua heard it the first time during our ceremony yet he was able to quote parts of the our vows in his speech... he was indeed very attentive. After the ceremony, while still on the stage, hb started to panic as he couldn't find the angbao, Dr Phua said softly to assure him, "No worries, no worries... we'll do this later... It's okay..." (Hb managed to find it in the end ;) ).
A little friendly advice for BTBs to take note...
- Dr. Phua drives, so please prepare a complimentary parking coupon for him.
- His sessions are usually rather long so prepare at least 30 mins for it.
- There is no need to reserve a seat for him for the banquet (if you are having ROM & AD on the same day) as he would tell you he wants to go home to accompany his wife
Review 2:
Just had my solemnization on Saturday, 5th June 2010 and we invited Dr Phua as our solemnizer! I have only good words for Dr Phua for he's really a good solemnizer. Since it was raining yesterday and that might be the reason he arrived on the dot. But upon arrival, he briefly walked through with us what will happen during the solemnization before starting the ceremony.
During the ceremony which was conducted in Mandarin, his speech was made to make us relax and enjoy the ceremony since we were obviously a bit nervous since it was afterall a serious affair. Hehez. Everyone was in laughter and relaxing after listening to his speech and he brought us through the vows and all in a relaxed manner. While wearing the wedding band and signing, he always ensure that the photographer captures all these moments. Not forgetting the "Kiss The Bride" moment! Hehez.
Then both families and us took a photo with him when he presented the cert to us. It was really a pleasant time with Dr Phua and we were glad we invited him.
Review 3:
Had my wedding recently & engaged Dr Phua as my solemniser. I asked him if we needed to meet up, he said it wasn't neccessary. Was very prompt in sending me the consent form the day after I invited him through email.
Nearer the date, I emailed him our personal vows to check & he "ok-ed" them. As it was his lunch hour, we asked if he needed us to pick him up at his workplace, which was very near our venue. He said not needed, he will drive to the hotel. We passed him a carpark coupon & an AB after the ceremony. He spoke in a mixture of English & Mandarin & addressed both us & our guests. He's very thorough & briefed us on the process right before we started. Once he started speaking about marriage & love etc, I started tearing hehehe!
The entire ceremony took longer than expected. Close to 30min, and he stayed on a while to take photos with us & ensure the PG captured certain shots too.
Very pleasant & experienced JP!
He sounds great, doesn't he? I'm looking forward to a great solemnization~ =D
