One day in a man's life everything has to be close to perfection. And that's his wedding day. Later on, the man finds out that for a woman things are a bit different. These perfect days have to come in much more often bringing equal amounts of cheerfulness and stress.
So the perfect day for my friend Emil and his bride Krystal happened to be right before Christmas. And just like in one of my childhood fairy tales the wedding actually lasted a whole week. A huge house was rented for the guests. It had seven bedrooms, a hot tub and a living room as big as my flat. They said it belonged to a Mormon family, but to me all the houses on that street were just as big as this one. We also had a magic pool table that in reality was a human magnet. When we first got into the house it felt a bit empty and strange, but things were about to change. Family and friends started to show up and soon the house was too small for everyone.
All those new faces asking twice about my funny name and trying to pick up my witty accent got me a bit worried at first. But the weds to be had it all planed. They locked us up in this house for three days (I think one night about 20 people slept there) and soon the faces became names, the names became stories and the stories became bridges over every possible gap. On a few occasions some of us managed to escape and explore the surroundings, do some shopping (amazing discounts), ski, and even play some basketball. Inside the house a lot of the time was spent around the dining table trying a very substantial and diverse cuisine. In US peanut butter seems to be essential for breakfast. We had a bucket of it, and it was going down rapidly. For the Christmas day we enjoyed a traditional Transylvanian dinner. No, not speared turkey cooked in blood, but “salata de boef”, soup and cabbage rolls.
Past memories were inundating my mind and the snow created an ambiance hard to describe... It was magic. Americans like their Christmas. Every house had amazing light decorations. We drove past this street one evening that seemed to be a Hollywood setup for a remake of “It’s a Wonderful Life”.
And then the wedding day came… Initially, KrystalimE (that’s a name they’ve coined for themselves) had planned a wedding on skis, somewhere on the slopes of Alta, but since a massive snowstorm was on the way, plan B had to be adopted. Arrangements were made for the reception to be held in a beautiful greenhouse that looked a bit like a tropical forest in contrast with the white blizzard outside. Now, I’ve known Emil since we were five. We grew up together, and since I don’t have any siblings I like to think of him as my brother. We went to school together, rode the same bike for a while (his), went trout fishing, chased dogs, fought “Corneii” every now and again, rode a home-made vehicle down the hill (Carutul), played the “tuberman” wars in the forest ” and hundreds of other things. But one thing we never did. We never spoke about the perfect day. Never! And when the night before I asked Emil if he’s nervous he said he didn’t think too much about it. But that morning he came to me and said with a little tremble in his voice… “Man, it’s happening”. And that tremble became stronger that day showing a man not frightened or unsecure, but emotional and in love. When the bride came in, beautiful and radiant, that emotion almost burst out. They read their vows, and while they were looking at each other as if they’ve been separated for the last ten years, my mind went back to the moment I did the same thing, three years ago. I looked at the incredible woman sitting next to me and she was smiling. I knew her mind was browsing the same past.
We had a wonderful dinner that featured among many things a bean soup. Concerned about the well being of their guests, the hosts provided some pills that battled the well-know secondary effects of the beans. I don’t know if they stop the sound, change the odour or prevent “things” from happening at all, but they didn’t work for me! They did prove however, that in the US you can get a pill for everything. I should have brought some laughing pills because after the dinner, it was speech time. I said a few words as well, but nobody got my jokes except Emil, Krystal and Georgi. Actually some people looked at me in horror, so I'm expecting Greenpeace to set my house on fire soon, for animal cruelty. Emil's not safe either.
After the dinner party the newlyweds drove to an unknown location. We went back to the house and for about an hour a diabolical plan to locate them was put together, involving sophisticated devices, spies, double agents and satellite tracking. Eventually an old, wise man pointed out that maybe they want to be alone for a reason. Hmmm…
And that’s the way things went. When everything was over and the house started to feel empty again, I felt a bit sorrow. But, as they say it’s never the end, it’s a new beginning. Now I have 20 more people to send Christmas cards to and if ever I get lost in Alaska, I know who to call.
See more pictures in this album, or on Krystal’s website.
So the perfect day for my friend Emil and his bride Krystal happened to be right before Christmas. And just like in one of my childhood fairy tales the wedding actually lasted a whole week. A huge house was rented for the guests. It had seven bedrooms, a hot tub and a living room as big as my flat. They said it belonged to a Mormon family, but to me all the houses on that street were just as big as this one. We also had a magic pool table that in reality was a human magnet. When we first got into the house it felt a bit empty and strange, but things were about to change. Family and friends started to show up and soon the house was too small for everyone.
All those new faces asking twice about my funny name and trying to pick up my witty accent got me a bit worried at first. But the weds to be had it all planed. They locked us up in this house for three days (I think one night about 20 people slept there) and soon the faces became names, the names became stories and the stories became bridges over every possible gap. On a few occasions some of us managed to escape and explore the surroundings, do some shopping (amazing discounts), ski, and even play some basketball. Inside the house a lot of the time was spent around the dining table trying a very substantial and diverse cuisine. In US peanut butter seems to be essential for breakfast. We had a bucket of it, and it was going down rapidly. For the Christmas day we enjoyed a traditional Transylvanian dinner. No, not speared turkey cooked in blood, but “salata de boef”, soup and cabbage rolls.
Past memories were inundating my mind and the snow created an ambiance hard to describe... It was magic. Americans like their Christmas. Every house had amazing light decorations. We drove past this street one evening that seemed to be a Hollywood setup for a remake of “It’s a Wonderful Life”.
And then the wedding day came… Initially, KrystalimE (that’s a name they’ve coined for themselves) had planned a wedding on skis, somewhere on the slopes of Alta, but since a massive snowstorm was on the way, plan B had to be adopted. Arrangements were made for the reception to be held in a beautiful greenhouse that looked a bit like a tropical forest in contrast with the white blizzard outside. Now, I’ve known Emil since we were five. We grew up together, and since I don’t have any siblings I like to think of him as my brother. We went to school together, rode the same bike for a while (his), went trout fishing, chased dogs, fought “Corneii” every now and again, rode a home-made vehicle down the hill (Carutul), played the “tuberman” wars in the forest ” and hundreds of other things. But one thing we never did. We never spoke about the perfect day. Never! And when the night before I asked Emil if he’s nervous he said he didn’t think too much about it. But that morning he came to me and said with a little tremble in his voice… “Man, it’s happening”. And that tremble became stronger that day showing a man not frightened or unsecure, but emotional and in love. When the bride came in, beautiful and radiant, that emotion almost burst out. They read their vows, and while they were looking at each other as if they’ve been separated for the last ten years, my mind went back to the moment I did the same thing, three years ago. I looked at the incredible woman sitting next to me and she was smiling. I knew her mind was browsing the same past.
We had a wonderful dinner that featured among many things a bean soup. Concerned about the well being of their guests, the hosts provided some pills that battled the well-know secondary effects of the beans. I don’t know if they stop the sound, change the odour or prevent “things” from happening at all, but they didn’t work for me! They did prove however, that in the US you can get a pill for everything. I should have brought some laughing pills because after the dinner, it was speech time. I said a few words as well, but nobody got my jokes except Emil, Krystal and Georgi. Actually some people looked at me in horror, so I'm expecting Greenpeace to set my house on fire soon, for animal cruelty. Emil's not safe either.
After the dinner party the newlyweds drove to an unknown location. We went back to the house and for about an hour a diabolical plan to locate them was put together, involving sophisticated devices, spies, double agents and satellite tracking. Eventually an old, wise man pointed out that maybe they want to be alone for a reason. Hmmm…
And that’s the way things went. When everything was over and the house started to feel empty again, I felt a bit sorrow. But, as they say it’s never the end, it’s a new beginning. Now I have 20 more people to send Christmas cards to and if ever I get lost in Alaska, I know who to call.
See more pictures in this album, or on Krystal’s website.
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