[Drysnyaty]

Thursday March 1, 2012

Special day to take the leap

KUALA LUMPUR: For many couples, Feb 29 is indeed a special day to get hitched. Bank employee Gan Tit Yew, 32, and Liew Peck Kean, 28, who were among those who tied the knot at the Thean Hou Temple yesterday, said they would appreciate their union even more as the wedding anniversary would come only once in four years.



Uncommon union: Gavin Khoo and Seng plan to celebrate their anniversary in a grand fashion once every four years.

In George Town, Gavin Khoo, 30, and his girlfriend Seng Yin Kwan, 29, turned up at the National Regis*tration Department to register their marriage. “The date is rare. It feels ‘fresh’ in a way. We can also save money by not celebrating our wedding anniversary every year. We can then have a grand anniversary once every four years,” he joked.

For Khoo Chung Teng, 24, who married her boyfriend Yong Mun Kwan, 26, the anticipation of a “rare” wedding anniversary date only made their day more significant. Khoo, who was born on Christmas Day, said she wanted her wedding to fall on a special date, just like her birthday. However, in Johor, many couples avoided the date.

“I guess the couples here want to celebrate their love every year,” Johor Baru Tionghua Association manager Eric Ku said. Parents were also delighted to have their babies born on such an unusual day.
Housewife Nur Zaihan Maszari, 24, who welcomed a pair of twin girls in Hospital Sultanah Aminah, Johor Baru, said doctors had told her that she would give birth on Feb 28.



Gan (left) and Liew sharing their special day with Yong and Khoo. They were among the 24 couples who registered their marriage at the Thean Hou Temple in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

“But I’m really happy that they arrived on such a special day. You really save a lot as you only have to celebrate their birthday every four years,” she said. Optician Eugene Heng, 29, said the family planned to hold a major birthday celebration for his newborn daughter every four years. At the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Setar, Kedah, Siti Zubaidah Ibrahim, 25, said she would ensure that her son’s birthday every four years would be extra “lively and fun”.



Double the joy: Nur Zaihan is overjoyed that her twin daughters arrived on Feb 29, a day after their due date.

In George Town, Star Publications (M) Bhd employee Kuldip Singh celebrated his 48th birthday with his colleagues and friends. Kuldip, who works as a security guard, said he had come in on his day off after being told to attend a “meeting” at The Star Northern Hub in Bayan Lepas. “But I was surprised when my colleagues suddenly threw me a birthday party,” Kuldip said. Also present was the company’s executive director Tan Sri Kamal Hashim.