One Month Ago...

One month ago this time, Este and I had just exchanged vows, and we were mingling with guests at the cocktail hour, munching on hors d'oeurves and sharing a cigar with friends as we all waited for the reception. Now with Northern Virginia under at least two feet of snow with more on the way and New York expecting a major winter storm with possible power outages, a month ago seems like a world away.

It was one of the greatest trips of my life and I could not have asked for a more perfect wedding. Already my mind has blurred all the good times together so instead of separate thoughts, I just get one overwhelmingly happy feeling every time I think back. We all have our own memories of the trip and wedding but these are the ones that will stay with me:

1. The Foroughi family was with us the entire flight down, and it was reassuring to have them there in case something happened. I was nervous about checking in my gown, losing my luggage, missing the transfer, etc. When we finally got settled in the shuttle to the hotel, with gown and luggage intact, I let out a sigh of relief. As if on cue, Kamran appeared with 4 el Presidente cervesas. Este and I clinked our bottles together and smiled. Our vacation and the rest of our lives had just begun...


2. Dancing till the morning hours, drinking nonstop, walking barefoot on the beach and ordering room service--we made every night count. We even had an impromptu bachelor and bachelorette party one night (the details of which I cannot share with you, but for the sake of recognizing them, I will say the Tooth Bump and Shrimp Fried Rice were two moments that made my bachelorette party awesome.)
Este and I put our arms around each other after reuniting at the disco and drunkenly made our way back to the room. What a crazy night! I thought. We partied hard and I felt rebellious as it was clear we were the last two people still awake at the resort. As I was thinking how we are such big party animals, the sound of my dad's laughter rose above a corner of the lobby.
"DAD?!?! What are you doing still up?!?"
"Heyyy...What do you mean? We are enjoying the night."
My dad was sitting around the table at 4 in the morning with a few of his buddies and several empty glasses of tequila in front of them. So much for me being hard core, I thought. My parents clearly have more partying in them than I ever will.
"If you guys are hungry, they are serving burgers and pizza at the lobby buffet."
"Thanks, Dad."


[Dad pictured here showing the chef a thing or two about flipping burgers.]

3. I woke up one morning to a throbbing in my left heel bone. Damn, must have been all the foot stomping I did on the dance floor the night before, I thought. But the pain kept getting worse the more I walked on it. A quick inspection revealed that I had a splinter in my foot. Can't be limping down the aisle! Help! I grabbed my mom and dad and we had an emergency splinter pulling session on their balcony. Could I have done this on my own? Probably. But there's nothing like being a baby sometimes and having your parents take care of things. My mom used a needle to dig out the splinter, and my dad held my hand through the process. Every time a wedding guest walked by, we would sit up straight, smile and wave like we were just sitting on the balcony having family time. Once they were out of sight, the emergency surgery would resume.


4. Feeling like a celebrity during the ceremony with all the crowds of paparazzi. Everyone looked HOT and famous, looking good in their dresses and suits, sporting perfect tans and Ray Bans. We were the main attraction on the beach that day. There was even a helicopter buzzing around. I was not anticipating the crowds of people who came to watch, but then again, this was no ordinary wedding. I could get used to this, I thought, as I walked down the red carpet towards my husband-to-be. If only I pronounced his name correctly when we exchanged vows!


5. My nerves were a jumbled mess the entire day of the wedding. Not because I was getting married, but because Este and I had a surprise tango planned for our first dance. Because no one knew about it, our practice time over the holidays was few and far between and not nearly enough to guarantee success. We had taken seven private lessons in the course of two months. One spin in particular had me sweating bullets. You see- 90% of the time I practiced this spin, I would spin out of control and fall on my face. This is one of the first moves of the dance, so if I fell, the entire dance would have been a disaster.
Before the reception, Este and I frantically practiced the dance in the room, and nothing went right. We considered trashing the dance completely but then realized we had no back up song. No tango- no first dance.
I guess this is it! We stepped out onto the dance floor. Everyone looked confused at my red dress and Este's all-black attire. Music comes on, and I am supposed to do a sexy walk towards him. My left foot slipped on the sandy dance floor and I stumbled. I heard a smirk from the audience, and I knew it was over. My worst nightmare had come true. I messed up and someone laughed at me. But then I put my hand on Este's shoulder for the first basic step, and I miraculously relaxed. The worst had happened, and I made up my mind to have fun. I've always wanted to learn how to do the tango, and here we were tearing up the dance floor. Now Este, spin me like you've never spun me before!



To be continued....