My bridesmaids (save for one, who so happens to be of the same background as me) were a bit confused when I said that I didn't care what we decided to do for my bachelorette party so long as there was a penis cake involved. No, this is not one of those boring penis-shaped cake pans you can get at any party store for bachelorette parties... this HAS to be one of those frosting penises that STICK OUT of the cake. Filipino Style.

I'm Filipino, and if there is one thing I have picked up from my culture, it's the love for novelty phallic symbols. This penis cake is a pretty big tradition, especially for bachelorettes in the Philippines. They even featured it in the show Sin Cities! In fact, here is a funny tidbit for you. A penis cake very similar to the picture shown above (the penis cake in my memory had a smiley face on the head) was what initially taught me about the birds and the bees (and, incidentally, foreplay as well). Imagine being a 5-year old walking into a bakery with your 20-something maid of honour aunt to pick up this kind of cake for her best friend's bachelorette party. There were lots of questions and they were all answered with the kind of bluntness you normally wouldn't want to stress a 5-year old with. Yep, there were no storks for this little child, people. It was all about the penis cake lecture.

So bridesmaids, I put you to the challenge. How epic can we make my penis cake? 

With the hot summer weather finally here, Mr. Zombie and I are in total fantasy trip mode. The unrelated day jobs can really put a toll on you, especially when the sun is shining through your window, mocking you as you try to stare at your computer screen. Naturally, our conversations about hypothetical vacations lead to one big topic: where the heck are we going to go for our honeymoon?!

As previously mentioned, Mr. Zombie and I had dreamed of a Japan honeymoon. However, with our tight budget we have to postpone the Japanese misadventure for now. We are still in search for a cheap, yet satisfying honeymoon destination.

At first, we tossed around the idea of New York City. Mr. Zombie and I are city dwellers at heart and would really appreciate the energy of a place like NYC... but could we match that kind of energy right after a wedding? Probably not. New York is the type of place where we'd feel the need to be on the go all the time. There are so many places to see. While I am madly in love with this city (I try to visit at least once a year), I don't think this is really prime honeymoon destination. I mean, let's be blunt here, how much sex could we possibly have if we're sightseeing all day?

Then we thought of a place that is, at least compared to New York, a bit more mellow. We thought of staying at the Le Petit Prince bed and breakfast in Montreal. This particular bed and breakfast getaway has been on our list of possible weekend escapes since we saw the website and loved that it was named after one of my all-time favourite books. Other perks of having a honeymoon in Montreal: all the authentic poutine we could eat and it's only a couple of hours away from an even more romantic destination: Quebec City.

But here is the problem. While Montreal and Quebec City are truly fascinating places, we would be going up there in November. November means cold... like, mits, tuques and forming small clouds with your mouth when you breathe out the freezing air cold. Shivering isn't our idea of relaxing. Snow pants aren't sexy either. We decided to reserve this romantic B&B idea for a summer weekend sometime in the distant future.

But where else can we go?

Some tropical destination? Are we the all-inclusive beach resort type? I mean, they can be fairly affordable and they're a lot less stressful to coordinate-- but can we handle that kind of pampered lifestyle for a week?


Under normal circumstances, we would probably laugh at the idea and say "of course not. We're so darn used to hostels, hanging with the locals and arguing endlessly about directions with a map and a compass in our hands. How can we possibly be entertained by a beach resort?"

But wait a tick. A honeymoon is a vacation to be taken right after the wedding. We'd probably be exausted from all the planning that we couldn't possibly have the energy to be gallavanting around some foreign city with 50lb packs. We need some place that is relaxing. Some place warm. Some place where we'd feel secluded from the world so that we could *ahem* consumate the marriage in peace. Maybe a resort is the way to go after all?

Does anyone have any suggestions on excellent beach resorts to go to in November? Perhaps beach resorts in Mexico so that we could at least entertain our geeky side and explore the Mayan ruins for a day?

I've been to a lot of weddings growing up... aunts, cousins, more relatives here and there. I often only knew one of the two individuals getting hitched (or else acquainted to... when you're a kid and you're watching adults getting married, the age gap can do a number to your level of caring) and thus have no real emotional connection to the event other than the obvious "oh, that's sweet. You're not single anymore. Go make babies, hoorah". I have never attended a wedding that involved a close friend, let alone two close friends marrying each other. You can only imagine how excited and honoured I was to be able to witness and document the Hummingbirds tie the knot yesterday.

I met the Hummingbirds the same year that they met. They started dating in the summer and I met Mr. Hummingbird in the fall when we both worked at the same book store. I've seen their relationship grow first-hand and I know how well they compliment each other. These guys are perfect for each other, and words can't describe how happy I am for them.*

See? Perfect. (Yea, the teaser pictures are blurry because I was trying to film at the same time I took these, but you see the loving emotions all the same.)

As for the wedding itself, I will let Mrs. Hummingbird share all the details, but I can tell you that it was a lot of fun and that all their long months of planning really paid off. I was with Miss Hummingbird on her last night as a single woman and throughout the entire morning when she got ready. She looked very pretty and took it all like a pro despite worrying all morning about the weather.

And guess what... despite the strong thunderstorm that ripped through the area the night before and earlier that morning... IT DIDN'T RAIN DURING THE WEDDING!!! In fact, the sun made a special appearance for most of it. And the mud that the thunderstorm caused? Oh. It only became a minor detail in the end.


While I was the only one prepared with my polka-dot rain boots on, almost everyone took their shoes off and enjoyed the squishiness between their toes during the reception. And let me tell you, it brought out the playfulness in everyone!

Yes. This wedding is Zombie approved. In fact, here is a little piece of trivia... this is actually the FIRST wedding Mr. Zombie had ever attended. You can see from the grin on his face that he really enjoyed himself (and even the cake!).

I will be going through the footage this week and I will edit it ASAP. Hopefully I'll have a little sneak peak for Mrs. Hum to post when she gets back from her honeymoon! Congratulations to the Hummingbirds! We love you guys!


* Um, sorry I got sappy there, Mr. and Mrs. Hum, but ya know... the love... it makes friends a little cheesy.  

Mr. Zombie and I are foodies. We love eating out, but at the same time we live off a student budget. As a result, we both have quite the penchant for cheap eats*. We'd much prefer sitting in a casual bar or diner eating some comfort favourites than going out to a chic high-end restaurant eating bite size entrees made of ingredients we haven't even heard of, let alone pronounce. This plays a huge factor in our wedding. We both see no point in dishing out over a hundred dollars a plate for these silly five-course sit-down meals that won't fill you up. Why do it when we feel awkward eating at a posh restaurant every other day of our lives? We want to serve food that is casual and fun. We want to share with guests a cheap little fantastic dish we both bond over.


Poutine. A French-Canadian delicacy which consists of three main ingredients: fresh-cut french fries, gravy and cheese curds. You can get them at burger joints, you can get them at little fries stands on the side of the road**. Seems simple enough, yes? Well let me tell you, the perfect Poutine is an art form. Unless you are in rural Quebec, it is extremely hard to find excellent Poutine. We know. We've both done a Poutine tour of Canada and have been disappointed more than satisfied... but when the Poutine is made just right, the feeling of eating it can only be described as heaven.

Living in Toronto where the French-Canadian population is significantly smaller, the only close-to-decent Poutine we can find is from a Montreal-style diner in the Annex called Mel's Delicassen (and even then, they serve their Poutine with SHREDDED cheese, not cheese curds). We were on a hunt for a vendour who could do the dish justice. We'd fly them down from Quebec if we have to!

Luckily, we didn't have to dish the extra cash to fly any Poutine chefs down from the province next-door because of a little piece of trivia the events coordinator at our venue shared with us about the hotel's in-house head chef: he is French-Canadian. Sure enough, his Poutine is fantastic... it is even, dare I say, the best Poutine we've ever had in Toronto. What makes this Poutine a meal fit for a wedding? Well, it's got the fresh-cut fries sprinkled with chives for a kick and the biggest, squishiest cheese-curds I've ever had. It also has two gravy options: chicken and mushroom-- both types of gravy taste excellent AND they allow for both vegetarians and meat-eaters to enjoy this comfort-favourite. We've got a winning dish here!

*With the exception of sushi. Oh my god do I love sushi and would be happy to eat only sushi for all eternity.

** The Poutine shown in the pictures above are courtesy of a lovely little chip stand in Ottawa where Mr. Zombie and I share a family-size container whenever we visit his parents for a few days.