MANILA – Kapamilya actress Christine Reyes and her non-showbiz fiancé, Ali Khatibi, are getting married in Balesin Island on January 27 – the same date they first realized their admiration for each other back in 2013.
“Nalaman namin na we like each other nung time na ‘yun. Kaya gusto sana namin ‘yung Balesin wedding namin sa January 27… Dapat dun ‘yung [prenuptial pictorial] namin. Bayad na ‘yun so sabi namin dalhin na lang namin doon sina Pastor tapos doon na magpakasal.,” Christine told Kris Aquino during her guesting in Kris TV on Tuesday, December 8.
(We discovered that we liked each other that time. That’s why we want our Balesin wedding to be on January 27…. Our prenuptial pictorial was set there. It’s already paid so we thought of bringing our Pastor there and get married there as well.)
The couple’s first option, however, was to have a backyard wedding in their house. But with the construction needing more time, they opted to tie the knot in Balesin.
“Kaysa naman somewhere here na very normal… Gusto naman talaga niya [Ali], beach wedding… Na–stress ako sa planning kasabay ‘yung teleserye, kasabay ‘yung construction ng bahay. Kapag nagwe–wedding plan pala, ang daming kailangang puntahan, ang daming kailangan mag–decide kami together,” the 26-year-old actress said, admitting that they originally planned to wed last December 3 but their conflicting schedules made them postpone the wedding.
(Instead of [getting married] somewhere here that’s very normal… He really wanted a beach wedding…. I got stressed with the planning along with the teleserye, along with the construction of the house. [I realized that] when you plan for a wedding, you have to decide together on a lot of things.)
“Gusto ko kasama ko siya palagi… E, may times na ang dami niyang ginagawa. Ang dami niyang ka–meeting. One time, nag–ayos ako ng schedule, fixed na, [pero] may isinisingit siya na kliyente. So, nag–away kami,” she added.
(I want him to be with me always [when making decisions]… But there are times when he’s doing a lot of things. He meets with a lot of people. One time, I arranged a schedule, it was already fixed, but he still met with a client. So, we fought.)
Finally finishing all the preparations, the couple only wanted a simple ceremony attended by their respective families and a few close friends.
Thank you for opening up my eyes to a better life. I couldn't ask for anything else but to be beside you. Always. ❤ pic.twitter.com/T7uGOydCsQ
— C R I S T I N E (@CristineReyesss) April 13, 2015
Family pic.twitter.com/s0UCgiL2Rp
— C R I S T I N E (@CristineReyesss) November 2, 2015
Khatibi Khânevâde & Reyes Family pic.twitter.com/6VwRe2yS6X
— C R I S T I N E (@CristineReyesss) October 1, 2015
Christine and Ali officially became a couple on March 8, 2014 and got engaged last September 9 this year. They were having a dinner with friends when the 31-year-old mixed martial arts enthusiast popped the question.
“Actually, I wasn’t even prepared… It just happened. We were talking. I didn’t even have the ring with me at that time. Sobrang spur of the moment talaga. Sobrang intimate lang (It was really a spur of the moment. It was really intimate) Then I asked her,” Ali recalled.