What a crazy few days its been!! Our wedding day went off perfectly, and Erin and I have been in a mad scramble ever since to make sure we got everything packed before we took off. The events started Friday night with the rehearsal at the church followed by dinner at Old Ebbitt Grill. The drinks were flowing, the food was outstanding, and the company was top-notch. After a few post-rehearsal dinner drinks, everyone was off to bed to prepare for the big day.
On Saturday, the events started out at 2:30 at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in D.C. The church was gorgeous, but couldn’t hold a candle to how stunning Erin looked (if things get too cheesy around here let me know). After a quick Catholic ceremony (oxymoron?) the wedding party took a few pics around the church, then hopped in a limo with our photographers to take some pics around town. Let me tell you, this was a blast. Our photographer is amazing, and we can’t wait to see how these pictures turned out. You can check out the samples here, here, and here, and we will post them all as soon as they’re ready! Highlights of this were, taking pictures as we were swarmed by tourists around the Lincoln Memorial and stopping off for hot dogs.
Around 6, it was finally time for the reception, and the Carnegie Institution was an amazing place to have it. Erin and I want to thank everyone who came out for making the day so special. We had a blast. After the reception, the party moved back to the Beacon Hotel around the corner where boxes of left over booze was carted into the lobby. You know it’s a good party when everyone I talked to the next day said something to the effect of “Man last night was awesome, but I have no idea when I went to bed”.
The day after the wedding, we spent all morning and early afternoon saying goodbye to all of the out of town guests as they packed up. After a way too short nap, we began to pack. When we began planning this trip we decided that we wanted everything packed up for our trip the weekend before our wedding to try and reduce the stress of having a wedding and leaving the country for a year right after. In theory, this plan was foolproof, but as it turns out, much harder to implement in reality. We started packing around 6 on Sunday and finished about 20 minutes after we were supposed to have left on Monday morning. The good news is I don’t think we forgot anything. The bad news is I don’t think we forgot ANYTHING.
When we landed in Paris, we realized quickly we made our first travel mistake: we forgot the printout of our hotel info, and we had no smartphone, internet access, or French speaking ability to aid us in our quest. We did what any true Americans would do in this situation… we winged it. I knew what street the hotel was on, and the general area (and I use “general” in the loosest possible terms). After taking the train from the airport and hopping on what we hoped was the correct transfer metro line, we got out with our 6 bags and walked 5 blocks to our hotel. It really couldn’t have turned out any better, but it definitely taught us a lesson… nothing can’t be fixed by just winging it.
After a quick nap to brush off as much jet lag as possible, we’re getting ready to head out on our first Parisian adventure. I think the plan for today is kind of just roam around the city and soak it in. Tomorrow we’ll begin checking out museums and the such. We can’t wait to really begin our trip, but we already miss all the folks from home. We’ll write another one of these in a few days that will hopefully be filled with more adventures and hopefully be much more entertaining!
Runaway Bride... and Groom 