Ian flew out to San Francisco the Tuesday of the wedding week to catch the bachelor party — camping at Big Sur. He left Boston right after taking his last remaining LARE. If he passes (another month until we get results), he's all set to become a licensed landscape architect!
The guys had a great time camping under the stars and sharing crazy Jordan stories, of which I'm guessing 50 percent involved near-death experiences. But I have absolutely no photos documenting this because Ian's camera, i.e. iPhone, died about 10 minutes in. I'm still a little bummed I don't get to vicariously experience the views through his photography, but Flickr searches give a good general idea...
I followed Ian two days later, arriving at the San Jose airport late Thursday night thanks to some delays. Because of storms in the Midwest our flight was rerouted, pre-takeoff, further north. We wouldn't have enough fuel to make it the whole way given the additional distance, but it would take a couple hours to receive a new a flight path south of the storms. The captain opted for the fly over Canada and refuel in Salt Lake City route. JetBlue was great about letting us call family/friends before we took off from Boston and again during our brief touchdown in Salt Lake to apprise them of our new 11:30 p.m. (2:30 a.m. in Boston) arrival time.
Ian picked me up after killing some time crashing a graduation dinner at Stanford. We stopped for some midnight In-N-Out, and then it was one more hour of driving to Monterey before we crashed in bed.
Friday was wedding day! We went out for a (late) breakfast with Scott and Bekah (so good to see you guys again!), then dropped the guys off to get ready with the other groomsmen while Bekah and I headed back to our hotel to get all gussied up.
By wedding time, Bekah and I were happily nestled into a pew in a beautiful sanctuary dotted with lavender and hydrangeas.
The ceremony was tailored to Jordan and Brittany. Jordan's dog Brie trotted in the rings right before the exchange of vows. The sermon was one written by an imprisoned Dietrich Bonhoeffer for his niece's wedding. And a footwashing ceremony brought a touching reminder of love and humility to their first day of marriage.
After, Bekah and I followed the bridal party for photos and a quick peek at Lover's Point, where Jordan proposed. The sunshine wasn't enough to cancel out the chilly ocean gusts, but the view was breathtaking. Deep blue water shimmering as it rolled in waves onto white sand. Tiny boys in swimming trunks whose excitement to play in the ocean trumped the temperature of the water. Weather-worn boulders watching them dancing in the water.
After photos, we headed to the outdoor reception venue. It's tucked away in the historic area of Monterey. High adobe walls surround a beautiful courtyard with a canopy of trees strewn with lights.
Dinner was an amazing selection of local food, followed by a delicious cake with plenty of raspberries sandwiched in the layers. And after dinner, we danced and chatted the night away with friends both old and new.
Congratulations to the newlyweds, and thank for a great party!
Click here for more photos + stay tuned for the rest of our time northern California!