...happily ever after!

Matt and I realized on our flight back (we had plenty of time to chat and ponder, as his entertainment system was one of the few not working, boo!) that we have already been to seven weddings together! All of them beautiful and unique in their own way. Katie and Filippo's was no exception.

We arrived in Florence on Friday afternoon and headed to the adorable apartment that Katie found for us, through one of her students (25 euros per person, a night - can't beat that! If any of you are ever going and want to stay there, let me know). There, Lauren (also one of my former roommates) and her boyfriend Jason were waiting for us, as we were all sharing the place. The owner was an extremely friendly Italian woman, who went out of her way to make us feel welcome and comfortable - had gelato waiting for us in the freezer, body wash in several fruity scents, flowers on hangers and laminated notes with useful information scattered throughout the place. Given that our phones were not working (one of the minor challenges of the trip, along with the heat) she called Katie for us (she was at confession!!) who told us to get over to her apartment in about an hour.

Once there, we squealed with excitement and joined Katie, her family and Filippo for dinner at Tijuana, a Mexican restaurant that we use to frequent often. It was really fun to be able to spend some time with all of them before the big day! That year abroad in Florence was by far one of the best experiences in my life and every time I think back on that time, it brings an instant smile to my face. Which is why putting into words, how special and dear to my heart this wedding was, is hard. To be in Florence, to see these two getting married - after being there the night they met, acting as their "interpreter", seeing old friends, reminiscing about life in an apartment with eight girls, being in a castle with Matt...

I could go on and on and on, but enough sappiness. Let me just tell you about this incredible wedding. Saturday morning, Lauren and I went to get our hair done at a little place in the Florence 'burbs. We had to go at noon, because they close on Saturday afternoons (go figure, right?) A few minutes before heading over, I realized that we did not have any visuals of what we wanted our hair to look like and while my Italian is not bad, my knowledge of updo terminology is somewhat lacking. Somehow, we made it work and honestly, we just wanted something that would endure the heat. Granted it took two hours, a lot of hand gestures, making new friends and bobby pin/products galore (ie: "styling hair pasta" as it read on the bottle. No joke. From what we could gather from the other translations, it should have said "paste"). When we were all done up, the stylists asked us to dance around a little, to make sure our hair would stay put. After I did, the woman said in Italian: "shake your head, not your ass". Well, well, well...tell that to Shakira. 

We thought that we would have a lot of time to kill, but before we knew it, it was time to leave and meet up with our other friend Doudouce, at the church, before the ceremony. This took took place at the stunning Santa Maria Novella basilica, which was completed in the 14th century and is famous particularly for it's "frescoes by masters of Gothic and early Renaissance". Katie looked breathtaking. Custom hand fans with the most gorgeous picture of the couple on them, were given to all guests (quite a hit, given the high temperatures) and a program, in order to follow the one hour bilingual ceremony. I had never actually been to a wedding where rice and rose petals showered the newlyweds as they exited the church. I hear it's much more exciting for the spectators, than those on the receiving end...Afterwards, transportation was arranged to the reception site, Castel di Poggio, a castle in Fiesole, which is a town famous for it's scenic height above Florence (roughly 5 miles NE). Once there, we mingled and chatted in the beautiful courtyard, with a mimosa in hand and a slice of prosciutto in the other. We were free to wander some of the rooms inside, but at one point, Doudouce and I found ourselves in some others that were off limits, while in search of a bathroom (I'll refrain from going into more detail about that situation). Dinner was served downstairs and indoors; I'm not sure what to call the area: Catacombs? Basement? Dining hall? Anyways, really cool as well. Delicious menu: pasta, risotto, beef, potatoes and asparagus. 

Waiting for our taxi in a bakery (yes, it is the same dress I wore to Breck and Ellie's wedding, please no judging)

Fans

Inside Santa Maria Novella Church

Mr. & Mrs. T

Italian friends of the groom (the most popular picture thus far with the ladies...)

Cocktail hour 

Dinner 

Afterwards, dessert and coffee was served upstairs, back in the courtyard. There were tables full of Jordan almonds, gummies, cupcakes, cookies, marshmallows, twizzlers AND the coolest and most delicious item in the spread: a gelato cart!! Yes, with an attendant and four flavors. After making a conscious effort to not stuff my face, it was time to remove the shoes and begin to relive our days at YAB (the club we frequented much too often back in the day). The dancing started and this time one was allowed to shake their tush. There was a great slideshow made by Katie's sister, speeches and the coolest cake cutting I've ever seen, as sparklers went off all around the castle moments after. Hands down, MAGICAL. 

Hazelnut gelato on the left and Doudouce on the right :)

Gelato

FAVORITE picture!!

Dance, dance, dance

The party went from 4pm to roughly 3am and my, oh my, those were some memorable 11 hours! Saying goodbye was only made easier because we will all be reunited again in April (well...also because I have never missed AC so much. Yes, yes, white people problems). On Sunday, Matt and I walked around town, met up with Doudouce for lunch, did some shopping and watched the Euro Cup final at a restaurant, over a ginormous plate of pasta (Spain 4 - Italy 0).

It was quite a coincidence to be visiting both countries that competed for the championship title. On Monday, we went back to Madrid and all you could see in the streets were waves of red and yellow. Apparently, everyone (and their mothers) were headed to Plaza de Cibeles to welcome the team home. We took a quick left and headed to the Museo Reina Sofia instead, where Picasso, Dali, Magritte and Miró were there to greet us and also bid us farewell. 

*Disclaimer: I did not take all of the photos in the post, the really good ones from the wedding were taken by Antonio, a friend of the couple.