2 Doors and 4 Wheels

I have never been fond of driving. Unlike most other males, the thought of speeding down the highways in a petrol propelled, steel and glass encased machine does not send me into dizzying heights of ecstasy.

Nevertheless, it has always been one of Her Royal Majesty's wishes to arrive at her wedding, chauffered by her groom, in a carriage that makes onlookers go wow. Perhaps she is trying to fulfill the fairytale equivalent of prince charming entering on a white stallion to sweep her off her feet. Although I'm not sure of her exact motivations, I do know that I will try my best to grant her wishes whenever possible.

With that in mind, we did some research and found WeddingCars.sg, a company specialising in car rentals for weddings. Although our package with the bridal studio already includes the usual chauffered-driven Mercedes Benz, we were willing to trade that for a more exclusive and personal ride. Though WeddingCars.sg, we booked a quaint vehicle called the TD2000, which is essentially a replica of an automobile as it appeared in the Industrial Age. Underneath the hood, however, the manufacturers had placed an entirely modern engine with automatic gear transmission for newbies like me.

Next, it was necessary for me to sharpen whatever driving skills I possessed. At a cost of $45 per lesson, I booked and went for about 5 refresher lessons with a private driving instructor. It was nerve-wrecking to get behind the wheel after such a long period of abstinence, and thankfully, I managed to avoid killing myself and my instructor.

Just as I was all set to be the appointed driver for the day, I received an email from WeddingCars.sg to say that the TD2000 was under repair. This was only a week away from the wedding, and without any hesitation, I picked up the phone and gave the company an earful for pulling such a nasty surprise. They were sent scrambling to look for other TD2000s, even if they had to get replacements from other rental companies.

Unfortunately, nothing else came up, and the few other providers either had the car in the wrong colour or had already rented it out. We had no choice but to settle for a silver Mercedes SLK, a 2-door convertible sports car.

Having only driven Toyota and the like, I was pleasantly surprised at the wealth of features in the SLK, from headlights that turned themselves on, to the Transformers-like movements of the roof when it was sliding down. Driving the machine was not entirely positive though - the ride was hard and seat too low for my liking. For everyday driving, I'll stick to Toyotas, thank you very much.

During the big day, the car, surprisingly, was not the subject of much attention from me. While it provided a good photo opportunity, and grunts of approval from my "brothers", it was merely a means of transportation to me. I could have been driving a SBS bus and I probably won't be able to tell the difference. After all, I had more pressing matters to attend to, such as getting married to the most beautiful bride whom I have ever known.

- Melvin