From day one, Myra made sure that she was on top of all the preparations. She had always envisioned her wedding to be true to the Filipino heritage – from the invitations (which she designed and produced herself) and the décor, down to the favors. She even produced a misalette with the same design elements she used for the invitations.

One sunny afternoon in March, friends and family finally saw Myra and Neal wed in a solemn, romantic ceremony at the historic San Agustin Church. Myra was a sight to behold in her off-white Vera Wang tube gown accentuated with a champagne ribbon.

At the reception, Angel Penarroyo of Tropical Blooms created a paradise of white orchids, calla lilies, casa blancas and roses on each table and swathed white tulle and gina silk on the ceiling and walls of the Maynila Ballroom of Manila Hotel.

Neal and Myra received the blessings and well-wishes of both their parents. Then, their guests feasted on native Filipino delicacies like sinupling na pancit molo sa bawang at kasoy, pato rellenado espesyal, hinomong lomo ng baka sa kabute, tinugkos na ubod ng binusang kasoy, pinausukang tanigue, lumpiang maharnila sa kasoy, bisteak na sugpo sa dayap at soy sauce, kalderetang kambing antigo, paella Filipino, pinakbet, crispy pata, and maya-maya sa gata at luyang dilaw. A big hit was the dessert buffet with maja blanca, manggamanilenia, bibingka sa latik, leche flan with macapuno, gulaman at sago, pichi pichi, bibingka monggo, guinatang halo-halo and turrones de saba.

The couple cut their five-layer bamboo inspired wedding cake by Penk Ching of Pastry Bin since the newlyweds were tinikling dance partners. The couple performed a money-dance the proceeds of which were donated to ABS-CBN Foundation. The couple also danced the tinikling to the guests’ delight. The highlight of the night was an engaging onsite audio-video presentation by Jason Magbanua with “The Prayer” as background music.