The day started out with a delicious continental breakfast at the hotel we stayed at. When Shruti and I went downstairs after 10 AM, the entire family was already there enjoying their breakfast. We grabbed some scrambled eggs, country biscuits, jelly and butter over toast, and the crispiest bacon I've had in a while. I'm not huge on bacon, but this was one was worth mentioning. The real highlight of what eventually became brunch were the waffles.
After brunch, my dad drove all the women from my family to the mall so they could shop around. Shruti had yet to find a dress, so she spent a long afternoon finding one, and it was beautiful. While the ladies were probably arguing and criticizing themselves in a clothing store, I went to pick up my tuxedo which still had huge shoes and pants made for an NBA player, but we managed.
After spending a pretty relaxing day in the mall and hotel, we got dressed and headed over to the wedding. Angel, Franz, and I headed over early since we were groomsmen so we could make this a smooth day for Eric. We all wore matching outfits and complained about how uncomfortable the shoes were (every woman around found this hilarious). Our dressing room had Subway sandwiches, chips, cookies, and sodas to calm everyone down. There was also a piano downstairs that Franz and Angel kept playing to get themselves in a festive mood.
We headed over to the church and some of us worked as ushers as the people started arriving. I couldn't help but notice that I didn't know anyone who was coming in because they were all Meg's friend and families--most of my family was late. After sitting people down, we went backstage and waited for the ceremony to begin.
Having only attended Catholic weddings in the past, I found the Episcopalian ceremony quite entertaining. The priest did all of the wedding formalities, but he was more laid-back and personable than your average priest. Giving Eric and Meg a speech on love and devotion didn't seem as boring and contrived as most--it was tailor-made to them specifically, and it had a light tone that diffused the crowd's tension.
The ceremony was a beautiful one, and most of the female population shed a few tears. After the church, we headed over to the ballroom of Rice University where the party was taking place, and there was an intense session of photos that took place for over an hour. Most of the pictures were taken in the garden behind the ballroom with trees in full bloom and a fountain designed for such occasions.
The party itself was a true spectacle. We were blown away by how fancy it all was--white tablecloth, classy band, great open bar with a true Southern bartender who loved whiskey, a full buffet, four different cakes, and lots of dancing. The food was delicious, the toasts were good, and the intermingling of the two families seemed to happen naturally--the mixture of Southern and Latino flavors that both parties brought created a diverse atmosphere which everyone seemed to enjoy.
This ceremonious union had a farewell that was as grandiose and fitting as the rest of the day. They left from the party in what I think was a Porsche borrowed from someone in Meg's family--her uncle I think--and made their way to their secret getaway for the night (we all saw them in the hotel the next morning so that kind of gave it away).
There's not much else to say except that it was a pretty perfect evening for Eric and Meg (even though the stress leading up to the ceremony was probably less than perfect), and anyone would be lucky to have a night like that.
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