Pop star Selina Jen (任家萱) on Monday married the man who had stayed by her side during an arduous year-long rehabilitation process following a serious accident while filming a TV show in Shanghai last year.
Selina was married on her 30th birthday in a high-profile ceremony that was attended by many of the nation’s best-known celebrities and covered extensively by many television news stations.
Selina, member of the girl group S.H.E., has undergone a rigorous rehabilitation regime since suffering multiple third-degree burns in the Oct. 22 accident last year. She underwent several rounds of skin grafts and procedures on her hands, legs and back.
Photo courtesy of HIM Inc
As a result of her injuries, the complex traditional marriage ritual in the morning was scrapped. After a walk down the aisle, Jen spent most of the reception seated on a sofa.
Since the accident, her fiance Chang Cheng-chung (張承中) has been by Selina’s side to cheer her up.
His strong support moved many of Selina’s fans and relatives, and prompted Selina’s father to say: “She has finally found a man that she can trust for the rest of her life.”
The wedding ceremony began at the Sheraton Taipei. Selina was accompanied down the isle by her father and handed over to Chang, a lawyer who is nicknamed A-chung.
The other members of S.H.E. — Hebe Tian (田馥甄) and Ella Chen (陳嘉樺) — and Selina’s sister served as the bridesmaids.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was on hand to give the new couple his blessing, citing S.H.E. songs Love So Right and Shero, while wishing the couple “happiness for a very long, long time.”
Ma said he came to keep a promise he made to Chang’s father, former New Party lawmaker Chang Shih-liang (張世良), 10 months ago, and he also wanted to express admiration for the “goodness, beauty and courage” of the bride.
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) were among the political and business elites at the wedding.
The reception was a star-studded night with many of the biggest names in Taiwan’s entertainment circle gathering to wish Selina well, including Jolin Tsai (蔡依林), Patty Hou (侯佩岑), Dee Hsu (徐熙娣, aka Little S), Kevin Tsai (蔡康永), Wang Lee-hom (王力宏), Lin Chi-ling (林志玲) and Momoko Tao (陶晶瑩).
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it