A VANCOUVER WEDDING

(Written in 2021)

Back in 2019, my cousin announced that he had finally proposed to his girlfriend of over 10+ years! He also said that the wedding would take place later that year which meant...it was time for a Vancouver wedding~!

Needless to say, I was ECSTATIC to go back. Vancouver is my second home so being able to go back and to be a part of my cousin's special day was going to make this the most memorable Van trip ever.

-------

We stayed at the Inn at the Quay and spent our downtime wandering around the market and skytrain Station. 

Our first day there the weather was beautiful - it felt more like late spring than early fall. So we walked the boardwalk all the way down from one end to the next, meeting dogs and admiring the apartments/condos backing out onto the water.

That night we had a cozy patio dinner. When I say it felt like late spring I really mean it, it makes me crave patio season now. The view up there is absolutely stellar, you can see as far as Pattullo Bridge and then some. The sun was setting and the food was scrummy.

-------

On our second day, mom and I met up with the bride-to-be and her mom to get our nails done for the big day. I think that was my first time in 6 years getting my nails done professionally and this was going to be...drumroll please...my first time being someone's bridesmaid!!!! So I extra appreciated that bonding time with the bride and her lovely mom.

After that, we immediately jumped onto the SkyTrain to go on our legendary walk from Science World to Granville Island!

Island Park Walk signage everywhere

Some crows chillin' on Habitat Island

We ate mini pierogis from Kaisereck Deli, went back to Make , the market and Paper-Ya, and I checked out Ainsworth Custom Design and Dragonspace for the first time. The overall attention to theming in Dragonspace and the unique handmade items for sale in Ainsworth made me walk away feeling incredibly inspired. I picked up the tiniest Tarot card deck you've ever seen from Dragonspace and left the store itching to go to a ren faire.

Before we left, we sat outside with the majority of the people on the island and ate our pierogis, drank our lemonade and watched the water taxis float by. The next time we go back out to Vancouver, we're almost interested in checking out the Granville Island Hotel since we love Granville so much.

We then ended up at my uncle's apartment in the sky for a pre-wedding get together. We spent the night playing ping pong.

-------

And then...the big day arrived! I woke up bright and early to catch a ride with my aunt to the bride's house. Since everyone in the wedding party all have tattoos and my canvas is empty, I wanted to participate too. So, I showed up with temp Sesame Street tattoos on my leg. It was a bold move in hindsight but to me an homage to the newlyweds and it was a smash hit!

Us girls got all dolled up and ate our breakfast and cried over how beautiful the bride was and then as the limo pulled up...it started to rain. And when I say rain, I mean downpour. Typical Vancouver. The bride's Mickey Mouse sneakers were already sopping wet and our dresses were fully drenched. We really couldn't help but laugh.

-------

As we headed over to a wooded area to take pictures, us girls and the groomsmen got to witness my cousin seeing his bride for the first time. He isn't much of a crier but the rest of us sure cried. That was actually when I met my cousin's groomsmen for the first time. It was like, "okay you just met, now let's all link arms and take pictures together!" We got pictures of all of us holding our clear umbrellas like in the opening sequence of Friends, it was actually pretty cute.

And then we were on a mad dash to get to the venue. It was a gorgeous boathouse that made us feel like we were in the middle of nowhere. There, you have a clear panoramic view of the surrounding water, tons of natural light, and a cute little dock for family photos. I will admit as nervous as I was, it was the greatest honour of my life to be part of my cousin's special day. It was really hard holding back tears whilst standing up there. Eventually myself and the maid of the honour broke down and cried into each other's shoulders.

I also became the unofficial slideshow creator and provider. That was my compensation for not being brave enough to walk up to the mic and make a speech. 

-------

On the last day of our trip, we all had brunch before the newlyweds would jet off to California for their Disneyland honeymoon (lucky!!!)

In the end, I ended up forming immediate bonds with the maid of honour and the mother of the bride. To this day me and my new 'Vancouver mom' text each other and send long loving messages to one another on holidays and every so often. It really was a beautiful trip and a beautiful wedding. And now our family has gained a few new members (officially).