Little did she expect that a koala enclosure at the zoo would turn out to be the spot where her boyfriend Tim Talbot would pop the question.
But that’s exactly what he did, dropping to one knee and saying: “Hello my love, would you like to spend the rest of your life with me?”
Beside herself with joy, she blurted out an emphatic “yes!” And with that, the Wild Life Sydney Zoo had helped bring two lovebirds together.
When contacted by FMT, Talbot and Adi, both currently based in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, described the experience as truly wonderful.
“Adi is obsessed with animals, and she had never seen any Australian animals before except in movies,” said Talbot, 37, a marketing director at a local culinary platform.
Knowing this would be an unforgettable experience for her, he figured why not take it a step further and give her an unforgettable marriage proposal as well?
“I didn’t suspect a thing! Tim was very insistent that we dress up nicely as we were going for a fancy dinner afterwards.
“I thought he was wearing the new suit he had just bought to show off to his friends,” said Adi, 33.
“I was so excited to see all the animals that we don’t have in Malaysia. I ran over to the koala enclosure and was just amazed at how cute they were,” added the airline cabin crew member, who was born in Melaka and raised in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan.
But realising the sudden silence from the group with her, she turned around and got the shock of the life. “I saw Tim on one knee with a ring in his hand. I just burst into tears! Happy and shocked tears!”
Talbot said he had always wanted the proposal to be special, which is why he patiently held off popping the question until Adi’s very first trip to Australia.
This, he felt, would have been a perfect opportunity for her to meet many of his closest friends as well.
He reached out to the zoo’s management, who helped him plan the entire proposal, even coming up with a believable excuse for having a photographer follow them around.
Overall, Talbot said everything went off without a hitch, with the only tense moment being them almost missing their flight to Sydney!
“Once the exceptionally emotional moment was over, it was incredible to spend some private time together in the koala enclosure, knowing that we were going to spend the rest of our lives together.
“Adi really bonded with some of the animals, and it was such a joy to see her petting and connecting with the kangaroos in particular,” said Talbot, a Briton who has lived in Malaysia for 1.5 years.
Speaking about the proposal, Adi exclaimed: “Tim also had the engagement ring box engraved with our names and the date, and I thought that was just so cute. He had really planned this out in detail.”
What’s next for them? Well, there’s the wedding to plan, of course.
The couple also said they hoped to return to Wild Life Sydney Zoo as soon as time allowed. And maybe Adi could even be a zookeeper for a day – if the zoo management agrees.
Here’s wishing Talbot and Adi a truly high-“koala-ty” relationship, and many, many wonderful years ahead together!
Special thanks to Wild Life Sydney Zoo for help with this story.