Lovely La Rochelle

La Rochelle was great! The forecast called for rain and clouds for the wedding day, so we were all genuinely surprised that the weather was picture perfect all day. It wasn't until evening that we finally got rain, but by that time we were all too schnockered and full of lovey-doveyness to even care. Plus, we were indoors - dancing like 8th-graders at a homecoming dance (or maybe that was just me and Gui).

Being the first full-on French wedding for me, the classy guests didn't let me down and everyone showed up looking glamorous as ever. Hats were in full-force and it was chignon galore for the rest of the ladies. Thanks to my lovelies back home, I fit right in with the chic femmes as I donned the head-turning feather hat they made me for my bachelorette party. The bride's mom even gave me a compliment on my hair accessory! Gui and I also got a little more wear out of our pricey wedding shoes, which I can't believe I managed to wear again for nearly 12 hours without pain! It felt empowering to strut around in a pair of 4-inchers again - something I miss doing, but will likely never be brave enough to do in Paris.

The food, champagne, cake, wedding gown, views, beach, guests, entertainment and FOOD were just superb. I ate every bite of my five-course meal and drank every glass of wine and champagne I was given - except for that one that the waiter took away while I was in the bathroom. Grrrrr. And we gorged on moules-frites, nutella crepes and Schtroumpf (Smurf) ice cream as our hangover food the next day, after a long day of lounging in the garden and at the beach. I wish we could've stayed longer, but the weather turned gloomy just as we left on Saturday, so we figured it was a sign.

I took pictures of everything - it was all so beautiful!! But, I'll spare you the 25o-picture slide show and just show you a few highlights of our trip. Enjoy!

Making it official at la Mairie.

The "best men" with the newly-married couple.

The wedding party. (Check out that gorgeous hat!)

Proud parents.

Gui forgot to pack his belt, so he had to go buy one. But, he kept missing belt loops!

Exchanging rings at the church.

Yay!

Champagne toast on the gorgeous, oceanfront terrace.

Grandma's buttery cone-cake (man, it was good) and flutes waiting for champagne.

A table.

Nerds.

Speech time!

And the guys give a funny performance...

...complete with dancing.

The family gives their own performance - complete with hand-gestures.

The first dance.

And the dancing continues!

The morning after.

Gorgeous houses in La Rochelle.

Ahhh, the beach.

Such a beautiful city!

On the road again.