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Regatta Revelry: The BMW Royal Langkawi International Regatta Ball
They came by planes, trains, automobiles (BMWs, mostly) and of course, yachts, to attend one of this year's hottest society events - the BMW Royal Langkawi International Regatta Ball.
Held to create waves for the proceeding Regatta in Langkawi, the ball brought together yachting enthusiasts, the beau monde (the two are not mutually exclusive, of course), members of royalty and captains of industry into a stately whirlpool of merriment in land-locked Kuala Lumpur.
Answering the invitation of the Chairman of the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club, Tunku Tan Sri Abdullah, 600 impeccably-attired guests drenched in glamour, opulence and a yacht-load of precious baubles, sailed into the Shangri-La KL's Grand Ballroom. Led by the Royal Patron of the Regatta, HRH the Sultan of Selangor, a virtual draft of VVIPs added tremendous splendour to the setting.
The lavish, eye-catching decor was topped, improbably, by cars and ships the former comprising two actual BMW Z4 sports convertibles flanking the stage. The ships, on the other hand, were delicate perspex models making up the centrepiece of each table and became, handsdown, the main conversation piece of the evening.
Floating serenely on a wave-shaped bowl filled with sapphire blue water teeming with live guppies, the ships made a huge splash with admiring guests. The evening sailed on with speeches by Tunku Tan Sri Abdullah; Chairman of the Regatta Committee, Dato' Seri Megat Najmuddin; and BMW Malaysia's Managing Director, Wolfgang Schlimme, who welcomed guests and warmly alluded to the excitement which awaited them just around the buoy in Langkawi.
The balls course led it next towards a luscious 4-course. French dinner which certainly put more wind in everyone's sails. There was certainly no race to the finish for guests, as the smooth-sailing evening was being savoured by one and all. Like a beacon in the night, the evening was soon lit up by Singaporean jazz artiste Marina Xavier and her band, The Colour of the Map.
Following her soulful repertoire of oldies-but-goodies, the ever-popular Paradiso Latino took to the stage always a cue for guests to take to the dance floor and soon everyone was testing their sea legs as the infectious beats of Salsa, Mambo and Merenge worked up a sea storm which lasted till the wee hours of the morning.
In the words of the Ball's Organising Chairman, Steve Day, The BMW Royal Langkawi Regatta Ball is set to become the event on Kuala Lumpur's social calendar. By doing so, it will help to promote yachting in Langkawi for many years to come.
Langkawi 1/5/2004
