Sarah’s & Paul’s Portuguese Destination Wedding
We ways knew of each other as we grew up but never really spoke to one another. One night back in 2009 we were both out for a friends celebration drinks and ended up chatting. Paul had a bit of a reputation so I insisted it was going to lead to nothing and didn't think much of it. He was very persistent and three days later we went on our first date to Nandos and the cinema.
From the very first time we went out Paul constantly had me giggling - his personality and happy-go-lucky charm was what really drew me to him. We quickly became inseparable and within 6 months we were moving into our first flat together!
Paul evolved from a typical lad to a romantic type and before long we were enjoying holidays to Egypt and Euro Disney, and then I took the plunge and invited him to Portugal with my family. My family and I had visited Portugal every year for the last 20 years so it's got a special place in our heart and we have our regular restaurants, beaches and bars that we visit. Even on our first visit there we discussed what a beautiful setting Portugal would be for a wedding. Paul continued to visit Portugal with us every year and quickly learned why we love it so much.
December 2013 was when we planned a trip of a lifetime, a month in Australia! We moved around from Melbourne to Brisbane, drove from Brisbane to Sydney in a camper-van, spent Christmas in Byron Bay, NYE in Sydney, Adelaide with friends and treated ourselves to a stay at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore on our way home. We had a truly fantastic time and loved every moment.
Much to my utter surprise (I control all the finances in our relationship!) Paul proposed to me in Brisbane, the night before we got our camper-van. It was so unexpected and amazing to know he'd even checked with my dad before we left. Much to my amazement most of our friends and family knew he was going to do this so how I had no inkling at all I do not know! The ring was beautiful and still to this day I have no idea how he managed to keep it hidden from me.
We started the planning while on our adventure and quickly agreed we wanted an abroad wedding with our closest friends and family, without any prompting we both suggested Portugal. Upon our return we entered into the whirlwind of planning and preparation, I was in my element!! Setting the date for 16 May 2015 meant we had 16 months of planning time. With AlgarveWeddingPlanners.com on board and the wonderful staff at Sandbanks our day quickly started taking shape.
The lead up to the wedding went so quickly and we loved planning each and every aspect and spoke about little else. Both of us enjoyed very well organised hen & stag dos surrounded by our nearest & dearest!
We planned to spend 10 days in Portugal - 5 days before the wedding and 5 days after and let our friends and family come for as little or long as they liked. It worked out perfectly, everyone came and left in different waves giving us chance to catch up with everyone. The boys hit Albufeira for the stag do resulting in various dads pole dancing and us girls went for a nice civilised meal in Vilamoura ending in dancing on tables in the Irish Bar!
Our big day was perfect in every way!! The weather was incredible, 28 degrees, clear blue sky, beautiful sunshine!! Everything came together in a way better than we could ever have imagined! And most importantly our guests had a fantastic day and night, many commenting that it's the best wedding they'd ever been to! Paul and I managed to sneak a couple of moments together just to breathe and take it all in. Our photos remind us regularly what an amazing day we had!
Thanks to very generous contributions from our friends and family we are now planning an unforgettable honeymoon, a month visiting Dubai, New Zealand, Fiji & Melbourne. We leave just after Christmas so for now we are busy saving and enjoying our time with our new pug puppy Ralphie! We're sure he is the perfect practice for the next chapter in our lives (post-honeymoon) when we plan to start a family.
Thank you so much to everyone that contributed to our wedding in whatever way - it truly was the most memorable day and we are forever thankful for your input.
Suppliers:
Wedding Planners: Algarve Wedding Planners White Impact Group https://www.algarveweddingplanners.com/
Flowers: Ely Flores
Cerimony and Welcome Cocktail Music: String Quartet
Photography: Algarve Wedding Photography
Vintage Car: Algarve Classic Cars
Wedding cake: Benedita Dias
Venue: Sandbanks - Vale do lobo
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