AK Personal Styling & Shopping: Europe Part 2

Welcome to Part Two of my travels in Europe....I started yesterday with my first stop in Paris, and today I'm going to continue with the first part of our time in Italy.

I was super excited to go to Italy for a couple of reasons....firstly, we had been there a few years ago and I fell in love with the place! On our previous trip we had visited Rome, Florence & Venice, and I immediately fell in love with the places, the people and of course, the food! So I was excited to re-visit this amazing country and visit a different area, Sorrento! I was also excited because we would be attending the wedding of my nephew Alex and his lovely fiancee Francesca. It was a major family event, and I would be seeing all my family together for the first time in many years! My parents, sister & hubby and son flew in from Cyprus, my brother & his partner and his three children all flew in from London, as well as many other friends and family from different parts of the globe including Australia, Canada and America! There were to be 187 people who flew in for the wedding, and a total of 300 people would be attending the wedding!

So, after a long and arduous journey to our hotel that involved planes, trains & automobiles, we had finally arrived at our destination where where we would remain for the next two weeks. The hotel we were staying at was gorgeous, aptly named Hotel Mediterraneo, and we couldn't have asked for a lovlier setting. Once we showered and changed we headed to the hotel that family were staying at for the big reunion.

It was an amazing night, and we were almost overwhelmed by seeing everyone at once....yes I did get a little teary, especially when I saw my oldest brother (the father of the groom) whom I hadn't seen in about 6 years! Seeing the kids was also a big highlight for me. I say kids, but they are all grown up now and some of them Bob my hub hadn't seen since our wedding over 14 years ago! It was so wonderful chatting to them and seeing how they have evolved over the years to become adults with their own lives, opinions and personalities. I felt extremely proud that they have all turned out to be great young men and women and it's a credit to my siblings and the job they've done as parents.

After a long night of drinking, eating and catching up, we said our goodbyes until the following night when there was to be a 'pre-wedding party'. So again we went over to the hotel where there were even more people, some of whom I hadn't seen in about 30 years if you can believe that! The drinks flowed and everyone was in high spirits and anticipating the wedding which was to follow the next day, and the excitement was palpable!

The big day had arrived - the wedding day of Alex & Francesca and I was extremely excited! Finally I would get to wear my outfit and fascinator that I had ordered from London! I wore a black jump suit in chiffon (although you'll see from the pics it's actually hard to tell that it was a jump suit!), and the pant part of the outfit was pleated and sheer from the knee down. I had found a thin chiffon shrug with a large sequinned cuff that I paired it with, and added lots of strands of pearls as the main accessory. Finally I added my black fascinator to complete the outfit. My husband Bob was wearing a cream colored linen suit with pale blue shirt, patterned tie and a matching blue pocket square, and I have to say he looked very dapper!

Off we went to the hotel where everyone was meeting for a traditional Greek ritual that we perform prior to the church ceremony. This ritual is one that is very old and one that I love. Basically family and friends of whomever is getting married (in this case Alex), bless them. While traditional folk music is being played and in this case my brother asked my father to sing during this ritual something called 'chatista', which is almost a form of Greek poetry that is sung, the family and friends take it in turns to bless the groom. The best man (in this case the grooms brother, Jason), then performs the ritual of helping the groom get dressed in his wedding suit and performs 'the last shave'. So as you can gather, there was a lot going on, and I always find these rituals very moving and emotional, and watching my dad sing the traditional folk songs as his grandson was being blessed was especially emotional.

After this we were all (all 300 of us!) taken by boat (yes, I said boat!) to Positano which is where the church service was being held. This was a surprise to all of the guests, as no-one knew we were going to be taken by boat, and it was a real treat. The scenery en route was beautiful, and the view as we were approaching Positano was amazing! The church the service was held in was ornate and gorgeous as you'll see in the pictures, and when the lovely bride Francesca arrived the look on Alex's face was priceless! She looked amazing! As soon as the bride and groom were pronounced to be husband and wife there was a roaring cheer and shouts of 'bravo'!

Next we took the boat back to Sorrento where we were taken to a restaurant overlooking the bay of Naples! Seriously! The venue was fantastic, beautifully set up and we were treated to a sumptuous seven-course meal, that's after the delicious canapes we all had prior to the meal, and then there was a display of the most amazing desserts I think I've ever seen. Top that with an Italian group who went round to every table and sang, the tarantella, Greek music, amazing speeches, a HUGE firework display, and well....you get the gist of it, right? This was a wedding to be remembered! I think Bob and I left at around 2.30am, but I believe it finished at around 4am!

I cannot tell you how wonderful this family wedding experience was for me. It was amazing on so many levels that it's hard for me to articulate. Take away all the lavish wedding experiences and it was so special just to have so many people that are so dear to me be in the same place all at once. When you live so far away from the people you love you sometimes forget what's important. And what this experience did for me was highlight how important family and friends are, and that no matter how far away you are or how rarely you see people, that bond will always be there.

I have attached some pictures for you to share this experience with me and hopefully enjoy...tomorrow I will continue the journey in Italy after the wedding celebrations...