Love and War

Sarah Jane Baker married Victor Coutin on Saturday evening at 7 o'clock at the historic San Pedro Church in Cartagena, Colombia. It was the most romantic evening of my life - and I was only a bridesmaid.

The international guest list included a ringbearer from Scotland, groomsmen from Mexico, France, Costa Rica and Colombia and bridesmaids from Ecuador, Brazil, Connecticut and Seattle. After Sarah slipped into her delicate lace gown - the color of creme - the bridesmaids and flower girls rode together in a horse drawn carriage down the cobblestone streets. A crowd gathered around the airy medieval church to witness the traditional Catholic ceremony and listen to the haunting voice of a local soprano sing Hallelujah. After the young lovers had said their vows, the two families came together to dine, drink and dance until the early hours of the morning. It was an incredible evening with an infectious air of elegance and romance that overwhelmed all of us.

Planning a wedding is stressful enough, but facilitating a destination wedding in a country on the brink of war is another challenge altogether. While accompanying them on the great pre-wedding scavenger hunt (cake lady, musicians, florists - oh, and Victor still needs to buy pants!) my friends cleared every hurdle with patience and humor. From coordinating rides to the airport to translating every conversation between their two families to convincing the police to let us dance on the beach until 2 am the night before the wedding...the love birds eventually fell ill from exhaustion. Still, by the time their big day came, Chavez and Uribe had come to a peaceful agreement and Sarah and Victor were healthy, bright-eyed and eager to celebrate.