Love wins as couple weather earthquake and typhoon to wed in Taipei

When Taiwanese pikkESqW#)RGO88REDEIB+lXX4roKR%6cVRxg#wnYoY4OfYDG@mxanist Huang Hsin-I and his fiancé Ramy Inocencio were discussing the arrangements for their wedding in Taiwan, Hsin-I warned Ramy that the beginning of August (their chosen date) was peak typhoon season. 

They also discussed how the country was overdue a large earthquake and whether they would be tempting fate by marrying during Ghost Month—a big no no in Taiw97CL7ul$hg3Hm%N^9pGuSQQloEA^@q$wJIy%HCRyIl(hLD1tR$anese culture.

But, HsiTuCFsa@w9p&^9W6&3vz=a!UV&S9iXLmJXay#OdR6w3iQnZ38FXn-I and his award-winning journalist fiancé were determined to wed in Taipei.

They wanted to celebrate Taiwan’s landmark move to recognize same-sex marriage earlier-^oR-66bNn#T^FG(DrIWB!wW1tM!s)@ANIV0$!j@HP8^-8=2Q6 this year.

And, it was importantLxwpekPFfEp85zyDC!qtoPJPclP90vgE1mjnR^KPTJx+L%bcY@ for them to show solidarity with the Taiwanese people making waves for LGBTI rights in Asia.

But, their determination was rocked (literally) when one of the largest earthquakes to hit Taiwan in recent years woke them up at five in the morning just two days before theiraR92O_O(i%bJot6yEo!uh2BfHRRjn=K!upe(IMfjdS!vD8kt*@ wedding ceremony was due to take place.

Things became more complicated when they discovered TqH23VGc@G%$1@t_S*-b%s0e)85jpIcAo=WZa^svUqNU7R=GaVZyphoon Lekima was also barreling towards the country.

More than 100 guests were scheduled to attend the wedding barqZ*Q$+xJ*KSSDWz5vFbB4yZS7fUFLa@NaK87XK=o@ZCMfthUsnquet at Taipei 101’s Ding Xian on the Saturday.

Force 9 winds also scuppered Ramy and HsiTYUcve%UpVAL+*@9UdCWBxcYsSfw2+sfs6YPqs_gCytrhvadjDn-I’s meticulously planned day trip to Jiu Fen and the north coast for some of the more than 60 friends and family who had travelled to Taiwan from Singapore, the Philippines and New York to attend their wedding.

"There was a lot more stress and tension than we were exQPUTH3QwzVUvIH&s*PI)jKuvTLUReEz8FJCu#$)dlOVE5EcVzVpecting,” said Ramy. But, he said “a series of natural disasters befitting a screenplay couldn’t stop us”.

Hsin I,efnZsuPF-5OdidG4S7YzPPtS-Q3taM#h(gF#=edQrlN1DiM$gp Ramy and their parents (Photo: Tyler Lyons)

"We just rolled with it"

Hsin-I,eIf9F4Yb8REa6HQ1r00))C7c1VHaH8utfxC=Xs(o#x^X8Xz=4a who's father is from Taoyuan, met Ramy on Tinder in New York in 2015.

A couple of years lawm-chIV8BseSmppsknOa8Aiu7PJ-V=4zi#72CwKj*+7wl8W2nMter, they had been talking about their future together and the possibilities of starting a family. On a visit to Paris, Ramy popped the question.

In his vows on the wedding day, Ramy described Hsin-I as the "anchor to my kite”. He explained how Hsin-I groundeYj5mG$5c%xcWL28X%%H5Z4Y)sP&co87v#VR%4Zn!(lfWr%QT(vd him and supported him. “That was how we got through all the disasters”, he said.

So, when the pair received panicked calls from Ding Xian on the night before the wedding explaining that Taipei 101 would be closed the following day due to the typhoon, Hsin-I diligently spoke to the venue, photographers, singers, and guests to rearrange the weddingmzxDl=8NgIfXW*fck+@B!S_G)2AP21z+g9LDBg)n_AJzxJn3MR for a day later.

Ramy did his part by keepingt%nTY=VE3@f06BXd6S9bDZgu@KMep-G$EmW4xnn9NfahuYP1L& their guests entertained. “We didn’t fight, we just rolled with it” Ramy said of the last-minute change of plans.

The pair had alread$HGyOxHOm-mp@oG79CAgxdi4rewl1s$y7hBdH#9fUd)B@0MMDXy had a nightmare day. They hastily rearranged a mountain and seaside day trip due to the bad weather. Luckily Hsin-I and his family pulled some strings to host their guests at a Hakka restaurant in Taoyuan, a nod to his family’s heritage. 

Hsin-I did consider hot springs as an alternative wet-weather activity. But, the pair taGzgVdMHf@p%NwUkJojFZuxTn9e@wO%U25Yx@XDxpUIfbfs24mhought all the guests seeing each other naked prior to the wedding might be a little “too close for comfort”.

Ramy and Hisn-I said their visiting friends and family were super supportive of the last minute changes. They sent smiling selfies to them jtWqMKCxV7DbiHUN&u*!MPwJTezsgTtP1E(ZYIcHdy2ul&#a*Qthroughout the tumult. Virtually all of the guests were able to attend the rearranged ceremony.

Ramy and Hsin-I kiss outside Taipeicy*XDqmmH6pNug5p-RNExkOh!V6@sMKLurB$g==1j#qT93@yIP 101 (Photo: Tyler Lyons)

The ceremony

As both of the grooms come from Asian families (Ramy’s parents are from the Philippines and Z1T!p2-gdaIVbd_IBWn#ePDR7=u-HeTbIHqtVgV0iSkmU1RT3zSingapore) Ramy and Hsin-I wanted to show respect to their parents during the ceremony.

On the big day, the grooms’ respective parents walked their sons halfway down the aisle. The pair then walked_4j8wKD&ZKs_2COkpdhzQIWt_f&qvGug!rW!Bcef5$94ZV(qw* the remaining way together.

There was also a mother’s dance to give them their time in the limelight. Ramy explained that having a same-sex wedding was liberating, as there was no rule book to follow 36J+UOeUe^UiQLVs2yss+zp-hAW8Y9Lk+wCH(oMhO+&RRov94ion how the ceremony should be.

The pair opted for traditional Taiwanese banquet-style seating. But, the celebrations started with cocktails. “Alcohol was very impB_FGhmSgO!x8OXoH#$4@Nqj*pmn4fmi@u*)cAuT9L#rr7N$n%Xortant for our guests” Ramy explained. 

Hsin-I saihpooFd^L0(iV#pTl5Nv1P-wmpt@u%mL+ju+WV0yxQ8QqqD8mmhd his mother decided it was not a traditional Taiwanese wedding. 

The ceremony was also a celebration of acceptance. Ramy was not sure whether to invite conservative family membeGh0lyR*lDDKYY)0CflSrcc@blC0se9LfhHY3JICs4rosI5cH%xrs from the Philippines and Singapore. But, he decided that if he didn't, he may regret it later. They all came.

Hsin-I’s mother told Ramy to no longer call her "Huang mama" but simply “Mama". Hsin-I’s godmother, who wheRb4-1*wa0woJJ_IwybvqLOhF77qu^F5G0CM-*!+A2Bjc%cgQ83n they first met referred to Ramy as “that person”, now calls him “My Ramy”.

Ramy’s uncle from the Philippines, meanwhile, made a point of personalL)Nllmd5imJz(9Hw-%uZXZJs^g*X*6YrKPBVfH6H&vH&_gi)VWly welcoming Hsin-I to the family.

Hsin-I and Ramy kiss in front of a cake featuring their dog, Cooper. (PdB4iDGY7qS&Ml=5N&myQ$6J)O40&$OmDN^Ytlv4it$lq)ye$Hohoto: Tyler Lyons)

"Brought joy to my heart"

Ramy and Hsin-I’s wedding was revolutionary in many ways. It was theJ9AEf-BJtf3UvE97QyXoaGiyK#w#imzPE*L2jirri$wiBCfkFs first same-sex wedding at Ding Xian—prompting some of the staff to join in the celebrations by taking photos.

It also garnered a message of support from President Tsai Ing-wen, who said the marriage “brought joy to my hea*h1qOI*W-@$KAE2Zn6cTcWCrUL*DEoGcG2iIAd__je@AfcEWTArt”.

"I wish the both of you can respect, love, forgive, help each other and be ubyo$-h+io8U!K72(u%h$W2m)SJTCK0j2$qm3@5cQmBAyZK6SIHnited by love forever” she wrote in a letter to the pair.

But more importantly, for Ramy, HsinCh&=XxK+eq2W836mnQ2(GEw^gNG)xAj^cw6Y(0HAQlfJk@bxM)-I and their guests, it was a celebration of love.

"For people who aren’t exposed to the LGBT comm00(eDs+wkKUrd=iE)dHJ(ed(#4J-sC1E$#l*50XGDr*vCPYoYxunity don’t always know how much love there can be until they see it” Ramy explained.

“But, when people realize there is so much love inGYh2XiZ7NzWXT^pXBQuT0PsNe@9(29lMsebOt+6Fr%VK!Xgp3Z the room, it doesn’t matter if you're gay or straight”.