Now, for the final post to conclude this overseas CD gathering. Day 3, Sunday, today marked end of the event. Continuing from where I left off. I slept at around 2am but I was awaken at 5:45am by my alarm, which I forgot to switch off. Not sure why, guess I still could not get over the excitement of this whole experience. Despite I slept like only 3 to 4 hours, I felt rather refreshed. I went downstairs to check and no one was awake yet. So I crept back to bed and snooze a little longer. At around 7am or so, I started to hear some noise downstairs, so I made my way down (yes, the villa was 2 storey type with 3 bedrooms on the 2nd floor). I was met with WE and MM but in both guy mode this time. I was quite surprised that how different they looked while in CD mode. This was technically my first time seeing them in guy mode as both of them were scheduled to do their make-up at Joyce / Miss Y Studio at an earlier time slot yesterday (9am and 11am time slot). Rather than feeling awkward since all of us were in guy mode, we just started chatting like normal, as how we did in our CD self.
As time passed by, all the other CD sisters began to wake up. All were in their guy mode except for MK, who managed to sleep in her wig and make-up and feminine sleepwear. Joyce called to check in on us and asked if we needed breakfast. Luckily for me and KT, I prepared cup noodles, which I gotten from the minimart near the hotel the night before. Not long after, Joyce arrived with her breakfast and we all had our breakfast together. After breakfast, we started to clean up the villa a little as we were supposed to return the villa to the owner at 12pm.
As we waited for the villa owner to come and take over the property, all of us were seated outside at the courtyard. Enjoying the sea breeze while we chatted about our views and opinions about this first CD gathering organised by Joyce / Miss Y Studio, next year gathering plan and so on. Some shared with Joyce how they continued with their costume change and selfie taking until 3am in the morning, yes, some still continued after they left our room after our chatting session. Throughout this time, I can feel that all the participants were so real and true in their personalities, either their male alter self or their CD self. Everyone just managed to clique so well. The credit should go to Joyce as she was quite selective about who to invite for this event. Maybe more about this later at the reflection part.
After the villa owner came and inspected the property to make sure all is in order, we handed over the keys and left for the studio. Throughout the journey, I was enjoying HY's stories about the CD community in Malaysia but the only difference is, we were all in our guy mode this time. Once we reached Joyce / Miss Y Studio, it was time for us to part as the event came to a close. I could feel the sadness inside each of us as we bid farewell to each other. This was especially true for some of the CD sisters who went straight off from the villa instead of gathering at the studio. I could sense that moment of downheartedness as some of the cars went their separate ways, that longing feeling that this gathering could have last a little longer. I guess we all had so much fun that seeing it come to an end or parting with new found friends felt so melancholic.
Before we left, Joyce gave each of us a little parting gift, which she specially prepared for us. We were really surprised by this gesture and appreciated that she had put in so much effort to ensure that this event went well. As I left my luggage inside her studio and I also needed a space to pack, so some of us went up to her studio and waited for me to finish packing. I actually brought a large hard case luggage but I did not want to bring it to the villa due to space constraint as we were supposed to travel in 3 cars.
After I completed my packing, it is time to make our way home. But before we left, we gave Joyce a heartily hug to express our appreciation to be invited for this gathering. And with a heavy heart, we bid farewell to her and that marked the end of the whole 2 day 1 night gathering event. MK suggested that the remaining few of us to grab lunch before heading to our respective destinations. We agreed and we went to a fusion Japanese restaurant to have lunch. MK, MM, J, KT and myself went for lunch at the restaurant recommended by MK. At the restaurant, we were met up with MK close lady friend who joined us for lunch. It was great to make another new friend on this trip. This restaurant served interesting Jap food and I would not mind coming back again next time, either as Francesca or my male alter-self.
After lunch, it is really time for us to part ways... KT and I began our trip back to Singapore. It was a long drive, taking around like close to 6/7 hours but it was really great to have KT as my company throughout this trip. We talked from our life encounters, experiences, our ups and downs, so many things to talk about. I really appreciate her and was really glad to met her face-to-face. I was not expecting anything initially but having her by my passenger side made the long drive return trip back to Singapore so vibrant. After we reached KT's house, it was time for us to say farewell to each other. We gave each other a light hug as we were both glad to have made another good CD friend through this gathering.
Finally, it was time for me to head back home and put this whole overseas CD gathering to full stop; time for Francesca to head back into hibernation mode again. As much as this closure sounded downhearted, I knew Francesca had her fun and her time through this gathering trip. She was so recharged and alive and had fun. She totally enjoyed been herself for the last 3 days and that was enough. Until next time, and with that, Francesca will like to bid all good bye (for now), take care and thank you for following me through this long 4 parts posting.
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Post-Event Reflection
After the dust has settled and the adrenaline from the excitement of this trip started to wane off, it is good time for me to look back at the event, my first overseas CD gathering organised by Joyce / Miss Y Studio. This post-event reflection was purely written by me from a neutral perspective and not paid by anyone. My aim is to be as objective as possible for others who may be interested in attending similar events organised by Joyce / Miss Y Studio next time.
Overall, the event was really well organised. Starting with the venue selection, Joyce and HY and the rest of the CD sisters chipped in with the suggestions while Joyce was hunting high and low for a nice place to organise this event. It was not an easy feat as Joyce was mindful of the amenities available in the villa. E.g. not having security camera in the villa to protect the privacy and identities of the participants, having a nice view surrounding and so on. As seen from my previous posting, the villa selected was an excellent choice but I did not really do justice to the villa as I did not take all the pictures (e.g. the porch, the pool and so on). But that villa was really lovely and perfect for this gathering.
Next, participants selection. As much as from a business start point, opening up the invitation for this gathering event to the public would yield more responses and participants. Joyce did had her reservation and consideration. As this was the first time she was organising this event, she decided to cap the number of participants to a maximum of 10 pax for easier management and she also did not open straight up to the public. In fact, she shortlisted a number of participants who had visited her studio before and she extended her invitation to them only, much like a closed door invitation. I felt that this is a very good call as the participants that she selected were someone she knew (maybe except J, who was invited by MM, but still, J blended into the group really well) and with a pleasant personality, someone who can get along well with others. I feel that most of all, we were selected as we were someone who can be truthful and real. Despite the initial plan was to have 10 CD sisters, the initial registration was actually 9 participants but one had to pull out last minute due to personal issue, that is why we ended with 8 in the end.
Next, event organisation and planning. As mentioned, the whole event was really well organised. The timing for the make-up for each crossdresser was at 2 hours, and that was quite common for Joyce as she really put in the time, effort and skills in terms of the make-up. The before and after effect as I mentioned above, there was quite a huge difference between the male alter self and CD self. Next, the travelling time to the villa from studio was at maximum 30 minutes drive, that is not too far hence not much time was spent on the roads. In terms of the planned event, I was thankful that Joyce did not plan too much activities or challenges, like the ones I experienced during my first visit to her studio, e.g. walked in super high heels with ping pong ball between the legs kind of challenge. It was purely photo-taking, bonding, chilling, karaoke-ing (if you sing), chit-chatting, selfie/wefies taking, enjoying ourselves in our full CD form.
I feel the main highlight besides the evening gown photo-taking was the sharing session where we shared about our CD experience and journey. HY was leading the discussion while Joyce helped to manage and facilitate the session, Despite that this sharing segment can be quite sensitive for some, others may have the emotional and mental baggage to overcome, but still we were all so at ease to share our hearts out, knowing that there is no barrier or feeling of been judged or guarded. Although there was a list of planned activities, but letting the event run free and easy allowed more room for free play and exploration, e.g. some CD sisters wanted to do change parade into the different costumes or clothing they brought and take photos as they hardly got the chance to do it any other time.
To me, the whole CD gathering was more for us to know other CrossDressers, for us to interact and socialise, to share our CD journey and experiences and most of all, for us to enjoy ourselves been in the shoes as a lady for a day. That by itself really made this whole CD gathering so memorable. Hope I am not overselling this event but to me, Francesca really enjoyed herself by been a lady, to be such a beautiful lady for a day, wearing a wig for almost 12 hours straight, wearing a lady's inner and outer wear as a woman, to be mindful of the way she sit, walk and eat, to walk around in the villa fully as a woman. This experience is priceless and I will really love to do this again and again.
Much been said, everyone's experience and expectation will be different, but I feel that the key to enjoy this type of CD gathering is to go with an open mind and open heart, out with all the judgement from the society and embrace what is to come. Things may cropped up but seeing how Joyce managed it, you can be rest assured that all will turn up well. And with that, thanks for reading. Cheers and out.
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