Our Story
THE GROOM
On 29 November 1979, Tan Yee San was born at the hospital where just about every kid in PJ was born in - Assunta !
He was to be the elder child and only son of the family, and went to primary and secondary schools in Damansara Utama and Damansara Jaya.
Yee San was plump (rolly-polly!) and had a really SHORT crew-cut for a good 14 years of his childhood.
His dad thought this was a fantastic way to save $$$ on shampoo !
Despite being the studious sort - this led to him getting constantly harassed in school with a host of nicknames ranging from "Rambutan" to "Santan" to "Fresh Fish".
He completed his STPM in Taman SEA in 1998.
While he had the option to pursue Computer Engineering in NTU Singapore, he went on to pursue a Bachelor degree in Computer Science, majoring in Networking from University Putra Malaysia, under the (mis-guided) assumption that being a computer games maniac makes one a better programmer...
He recalls seeing - while stuck in a traffic jam leading to the residential colleges on the 1st day of registration - a pair of very skinny cows grazing lazily on an open padang within the UPM border.
He swears he heard the cows laughing at him for taking up Computer Science in a university better known for its agricultural achievements !
Nonetheless, Yee San graduated top of faculty with a First Class Honours and CGPA of 3.94/4.00 in July 2002... and vows not to touch computer programming, EVER !
His quest to move away from computing led to him seeking Management Trainee programs with MNCs and large local firms.
He joined Maxis' Management Graduate Trainee Program (MGTP Batch 4) upon graduation.
This lasted all of 4 weeks before he was offered a Maersk International Shipping Education (MISE) Trainee position where he spent the next 2 years in diverse roles locally, while getting a chance to meet colleagues from different continents and travelling much of Europe !
It was Maersk's international experience and education system that Yee San discovered:
i) he loves to manage money - even if the money isnt his!
ii) he can help people remember his name better: he needs a rebranding - an English name!
Yee San, or Ivan as we know him now (much to the chagrin of his Toastmasters clubmates and friends who had always known him by his REAL name...) began looking at careers in a multinational Bank and by sheer fate joined HSBC as a Resident Manager Trainee in April 2004.
At life's milestone of the big 3-0, Ivan continues to be determined to be all that he can be, but also takes stock of all the blessings that he has received, and looks forward to the amazing journey ahead - of building a family with his university sweetheart...!
THE BRIDE
On 8 July 1981, Yap Angeline was ALSO born at Assunta Hospital. (Yes, just about every kid in PJ was born there).
She was to be the first of three angels in the family, and went to primary and secondary schools in Kampung Tunku and Sri Aman.
Angeline was small and short. She probably was the smallest baby in the hospital nursery and was standing at the front of the line during school assemblies throughout her entire school life.
Although her parents gave her a beautiful name, she was known as Yappie or Yap as her friends found it troublesome calling a name with 3 syllables.
She started a course in Computing & IT by APIIT upon completing her SPM.
This lasted all of 4 weeks before she was offered a place in University Putra Malaysia to do a Diploma in Animal Husbandary. After spending 12 months learning about birds, bees, horses, dogs, cows…. She had the option to advance into a degree course. She went on to pursue a Bachelor Degree in Biotechnology.
Being a competitive girl, Angeline ALSO graduated top of the faculty with a First Class Honours and CGPA of 3.969/4.00 in 2003. She rejected an offer to do her Masters because she vows not to study again!!
Being a bubbly and cheerful girl, she thought that a career in sales would be fun and so she took up a sales role with Roche Diagnostics.
One year later, she accepted a scholarship offer to do her Masters in Japan (she forgot about her vow of not studying again because the temptation to transform into a Japanese doll was much greater!). She spent the next 3 years working hard to learn Japanese and to complete her masters, while getting a chance to meet friends from different parts of the world and travelling much of Japan.
Upon completing her masters, she rejected an offer to do her PhD because she vows not to study again, yes AGAIN, NEVER!! And so she packed her bags and returned home.
Due to her interest in Science and her bubbly nature, she now does marketing in a Pharmaceutical Company.
Throughout her 28 years, Angeline has been a daughter, a sister, a student, a friend, an employee but never a wife. Although she will still continue to be a filial daughter, a dependable sister, a good student (she will soon forget her vows again!) a trusty friend and a responsible employee, she now looks forward to being a lovely wife to her university sweetheart!
OUR STORY
They met in university in 2001 – in the Golden Key International Honour Society UPM (GKUPM)…erm otherwise known as the GEEK club!
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She thought he was a girl. She was positive that the name YEE SAN belongs to a girl and so she called “her” to inquire about Golden Key Induction Ceremony. Oh boy, she was caught by surprise when a guy finally answered the call.
She thought nothing much about him after meeting him during the Induction Ceremony. (No, it was definitely not love at first sight!)
She thought he was mad to invite himself to her house during Chinese New Year but she still welcomed him with open arms. (Well, it is rude to reject friends!)
She thought he was just plain playful when she received messages with endearments from him.
She thought she was mean when she rejected invitations to go on dates with him. (It was quite difficult to get her out of her house.)
She thought that it was silly to watch a horror movie on their first date. (They both hated horror movies!)
She thought “OH, what have I gotten myself into!?” when he first told her that he likes her.
She remembers the day she agreed to start the relationship and the day he asked to hold her hands.
She remembers the happy moments they shared before he had to move to Johor for his job.
She remembers the holiday they had in Italy and Germany.
She remembers the pain when she decided that their relationship will not work and left for Japan.
She remembers the emails he sent her while she was busy turning into a Japanese doll.
She remembers the meet ups with him whenever she comes back from Japan.
She remembers the day when she came back and their LOVE started to blossom again.
She hated the long distance relationship. (He was in Johor and she was in Melaka).
She hated the feeling of being neglected. (He doesn’t like travelling back to see his girlfriend very much!)
She hated his need for DotA.
She hated having to argue and fight with him.
She loves his need to look for good food.
She loves him for being very knowledgeable and inspirational.
She loves him for being dependable and persistent.
She loves him for always wanting to improve himself and always wanting to learn new things.
She loves him for being very very very huggable.
She loves him for his occasional surprises.
But most importantly, she loves him for being HER SUNSHINE!
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He thought she was a feisty little thing…
He thought she was cute, cute as a BUTTON.
He thought she was a bubbly free-spirited angel.
He thought it was weird that she did not have a Chinese name, and that her surname came before her English name…
He remembers their first makan outing was a dim sum breakfast in Taman Megah.
He remembers inviting himself to her house for CNY to “collect ang pow!”.
He remembers she looked like she thought he was crazy. (What’s the big deal anyway, friends always visit friends during CNY…)
He remembers their first LRT ride together – heading to KLCC for a movie. (it was DARN difficult to get her out of the house !!!)
He remembers it was a pretty bad movie! (as in REAAAAALLY bad!)
He enjoys her company.
He remembers her affection for animals, especially dogs.
He shares her love for trying out new food places.
He admires her strong sense of responsibility & personal integrity.
He loves her filial-ness and strong family ties & values.
He remembers asking her to be his other half…
He remembers NOT getting an answer to that question ! (women… zzzz….)
He remembers being with her @ Frankfurt’s Christmas Market in 2003.
He remembers the sorrow of breaking up in SS2 McDonalds right on the weekend before he joins his new company.
He fondly cherishes all the good times they had while they were together, and the occasional chats via MSN and webcam.
He treasures the catchup sessions when she came back from Japan for holidays.
He remembers she coming back to Malaysia!
He remembers asking her to be his other half…again…
He remembers NOT getting an answer to that question… AGAIN !
He remembers having dim sum with her parents on his 29th birthday to seek permission for their daughter’s hand in marriage.
He remembers they said YES!
He remembers getting on his knees and asking her to spend the rest of her life with him in KL Tower on Christmas 2008…
He remembers NOT getting an answer to that question. (but he’s gotten used to it already…)
He loves her for loving him as he is.
He loves her for converting him from DotA to Yoga.
He loves her for being his moral compass.
He loves her for keeping things simple when he makes things complex.
He loves her for making him want to be a better man.
THE PROPOSAL
Christmas 2008
