THEY say love can sprout in the most unlikely of places.
For Renee Piggott, falling in love with her partner TJ Wilson at the local gym was certainly unexpected but not unwelcome.
The couple, who recently tied the knot at Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa, are both 37 and originally from New Zealand where Mrs Wilson works for Nespresso and Mr Wilson works at Howick Golf Club.
“We met at our local gym, both keen on fitness and socialising,” she says.
According to the couple, TJ noticed Renee a lot sooner than she did but both hit it off at a function held by the gym.
“We got talking to each other and hit it off straight away. The courtship period eventually took off. TJ was very open and communicative. There were no secrets with him and that’s what won me over in the end.”
The couple, who describe themselves as adventurous, say they love their significant other unconditionally.
For Mrs Wilson, her husband’s easygoing attitude to life, his fun nature and his honesty all drives her to him while her beau says he loves his wife’s enthusiasm, energy for life and sense of adventure.
“We are always planning our next holiday or adventure,” the couple say.
As with any relationship, there have been challenges along the way and for this particular couple, the hardships were caused by their careers.
However, good communication and support for the other have helped them both weather the storm.
Despite the downs, the pair was soon on the way to marriage hood.
“We were both very nervous to meet each other’s parents but it seemed they were more nervous than we were!” the couple say.
“They got on with each other very well though and we each enjoy spending time with our in-laws.
“We knew we were meant to be when we spent Christmas with our families and it felt so natural, like each of us belonged there. Having the tick of approval from our families was important.”
After getting the blessings of his elders, Mr Wilson decided to pop the question to his intended during a get-together on Christmas Day in 2015.
“We were surrounded by both our parents and our best friends. Renee thought she was opening a present of a piece of jewellery we had chosen together a month earlier. It turned out to be an engagement ring.”
It turned out the prospective groom had already informed everyone about his plans.
“Everyone knew what was happening except the bride. Her reaction was ‘yes,’ followed by happy tears and then champagne.”
It was on to the hard yards after that as wedding preparations began. The couple say they both wanted something easy and wanted a destination wedding.
“The hardest decision was choosing the location. Planning a wedding in a another country isn’t easy, however, our wedding coordinator Luse at the Shangri-La was amazing in that she took care of everything — nothing was too much trouble for her.
“We had been to several other resorts in Fiji but never to The Fijian (Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa).
“Many of our friends and colleagues recommended that we should look at The Fijian (Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa ) as an option and so when we were over on holiday in August, 2016, we went for a site visit and were impressed with what we saw.”
From wedding preparations, music to food, all things were taken care of for the couple on the day.
“Sixty of our nearest and dearest family and friends and 20 children holidayed at the Shangri-La for a week.
“Now that the wedding is over, we are currently in the process of selling our home and relocating to Renee’s home town of Tauranga so there’s never a dull moment.
“To couples getting married, we would recommend a destination wedding in Fiji. Have someone take care of all the details for you.
“It really made for a wonderful, stress-free wedding where we were able to concentrate on making special memories with our loved ones.”
