Le mariage strasbourgeois

The wedding in Strasbourg at the beginning of July is best told in photos:

I arrived on the Thursday evening to Strasbourg – there is a direct flight from Copenhagen to everybody’s surprise (some guests hadn’t even bothered to check so they had to travel via Frankfurt). I thought that the heart-shaped window shutter at my hotel was very fitting for the weekend!

Friday: The Civil Ceremony

On Friday morning I took a walk in Strasbourg, a city I barely know even though it was my second wedding there (first one was in 2003). The sun was shining and I enjoyed walking along the narrow streets and the river called Ill (I keep thinking that people were referring to an island – “l’île”).

I can never resist taking a photo of bilingual street signs

Despite the morning sunshine the afternoon turned out to be very grey and rainy – here the happy couple is heading towards the Hôtel de Ville under the rain (and through the market)

The Hôtel de Ville where the civil ceremony took place. French couples always need to get married in a civil ceremony, regardless whether there is a religious ceremony afterwards. Only family members and witnesses are usually invited to the civil ceremony if followed by a church wedding. The mayor reads several legal paragraphs, and the couples’ addresses and professions (as well as their parents’ and witnesses’ addresses and professions*) before the couple gets to say “oui” to each other.

“Le livret de famille” or Family booklet where marriage, births of (maximum 10**) children and deaths are noted was handed over to the couple at the civil ceremony.

A kiss between Sarko[zy] and Marianne (symbol of the Republic) at the Hôtel de Ville

Champagne and roses after the civil ceremony

The rain was pouring down in the afternoon…

“Je t’aime, moi non plus”…

Saturday: The Religious Wedding

The hairdresser made a house call on the wedding day morning and did the bride’s and female witnesses’ hair

The religious ceremony in l’église Sainte Madeleine in Strasbourg. The bride had asked me to read “la prière universelle” (the Universal prayer) in the church, and I was quite nervous but I told myself that this is what I have been preparing for during all these years when I have struggled with my French and felt that it wasn’t good enough… I was wondering though if the priest knew that I am protestant!? An older wedding guest came up to me at the reception afterwards and told me that I had read very well and that my accent was very sweet – for once I didn’t take it as an insult 😉

Since the couple lives in Geneva, Switzerland, the bride wanted some kind of Swiss symbol for the wedding and the cow bells fit the bill – instead of throwing rice or confetti…

Leaving the church in style…

The rings – in French there is a distinction between “l’alliance” (the wedding ring) and “bague de fiancailles” (engagement ring) – I always forget and call everything “bague”

Sausages at the “Vin d’honneur” – an Alsatian tradition?

Bretzel (pretzel in English) and champagne at the “Vin d’honneur”

Château de Pourtalès where the wedding dinner took place – the couple on the right are the next ones to get married, in Dublin in August but unfortunately we can’t make it

The placement cards were old love letters (or rather postcards) that the couple had found at flea markets – a great ice breaker as most of them had something written on the back (original text)

The wedding dinner was lovely, and since we were quite a few Scandinavians (Swedes, Danes and Norwegians) we introduced a few Scando wedding traditions such as making the couple kiss under the table and standing on the chairs, as well as stealing kisses when one of them left the table (when the groom leaves the table, all the male guests run to kiss the bride and vice versa)

The biggest fireworks ever before the dessert and dancing…

It was a wonderful wedding, and I am sure that “P No 1” and her G will be very happy together. I felt so honoured that she had chosen me as one of her witnesses, and it was great to witness how much in love the couple is.

*) The bride apologised to me that they had refused to mention a profession for me as I am currently unemployed – I didn’t care of course, it all seemed a little silly to me
**) I guess they add pages if you have more than 10 kids…

Back from a long blog silence…

I’m back!! It always feels a little weird to come home after a long holiday, but I am trying to get back to my usual habits in Puerto Rico, including the blogging. O’s brother C and German girlfriend G arrived one day before us on Saturday to San Juan, and tomorrow my aunt arrives so the apartment will be full – but it will be fun!

The sun was setting when we were coming in for landing in San Juan yesterday

I had a lovely time in Europe and not too much inspiration to sit in front of the computer when I could spend time with family and friends, and enjoy the Swedish summer! The Spanish summer was a little too hot for me (between 35-45 degrees!), but it was still good to catch up with O’s family and friends. And the wedding in Strasbourg at the beginning of July was wonderful and I even survived reading a prayer in French in the church 😉 Everything will be “showed and told” on the blog in the coming days…

The sunset seen from the plane

Wednesday recipe and an quickie update from the summer house

Blogging from the summer house where my father is taking a break from his work, which means that I can use his computer and internet… My sister has bought a “mobile internet connection”* so we will be able to use our own computers next week, instead of fighting for my father’s 3G-card connection.

A Swedish summer breakfast – NB the marmelade on top of the cheese

Everything is great in Sweden, except that O is not here – but he arrives on the 11th July. Before that I am going to Strasbourg for my friend P No 1’s wedding (civil ceremony on Friday, religious wedding on Saturday), visit my grandmother and aunt in the old summer house, and celebrate my father’s 60th birthday (shhh, he doesn’t want us to really mention it) and my own birthday…

The sun has been shining, it has been 25-30 degrees every day and I swam in the Baltic on Monday – it was 21 degrees! A Dutch friend and her boyfriend came on Monday and we had a very nice time catching up before they headed to Gotland – fortunately they had already booked their hotel because this is probably THE busiest week on that island (all the politicians and organisations in Sweden meet every year in Visby for debates and conferences).

And before I forget, the Wednesday recipe (the etiquette question will have to take a summer break): my father and I went to a small village nearby to check a flea market. It was quite a disappointment but we visited a farm with storks where they sold fresh vegetables. We decided to buy cauliflower even if we suspected that we would be the only ones to eat it… Fortunately my brother’s girlfriend also likes cauliflower!

Cauliflower in vinaigrette
– a small cauliflower head
– white wine vinegar
– olive oil
– French Dijon mustard
– salt & pepper
Put the trimmed (the green parts) cauliflower head upside down in a bowl with water and a few drops of vinegar. Check it after 15-30 minutes to see if there are any worms or insects… Boil the cauliflower (head up!) in water and some salt until the consistency you like – we forgot to check on it and it became a little too soft.
While the cauliflower is boiling, mix the olive oil, vinegar and French mustard together for a simple vinaigrette. When the cauliflower is ready, drain the water and pour the vinaigrette on top.
Serve with a side salad or as a side to grilled fish.

*) If anybody else is interested in how to get a cheap internet connection to the summer house without a landline, I will let you know as soon as I know more about the details 😉