Your East Anglian Wedding - August/September 2020 (Issue 44)

REAL WEDDINGS 33  E mma’s job as a teacher proved to be an added bonus when it came to dating. After qualifying she relocated from Birmingham to London and Miguel moved there in April 2013 from his home country of Venezuela. He’d just completed his studies to become an IT engineer and, despite not speaking any English, quickly found a job in a kitchen before embarking on his career. As newcomers to the city, they both joined an online dating service where they met. “At first Miguel wanted to meet people to improve his English and he liked the fact that I was an English teacher!” laughs Emma. The attraction turned out to be much more than that though and after a year of dating, they moved with Miguel’s work to Switzerland where they now live. POPPING THE QUESTION Miguel proposed on their second anniversary as a couple, in a hotel in Lucerne overlooking the snow-topped Swiss Alps. “He made me a book of our time together, full of photos and keepsakes. He even went back online to print off our profile pictures from OkCupid, re-activating his account which attracted some new messages! “The book was written in both Spanish and English, in the hope that my Spanish would improve one day! This then became the theme for our wedding; bilingual and multicultural,” explains Emma. The proposal was a complete surprise and the first person they told was the waitress as they celebrated over a romantic meal. THE TIME AND THE PLACE The date was set for 9 th August, 2019 and choosing where to wed was easy. “We knew we wanted to get married in Suffolk as I grew up there,” says Emma. “I had a lovely childhood surrounded by family and friends. Many of my friends have moved to London or surrounding cities, Miguel’s are scattered all over the world and with his family being in Venezuela, Suffolk was the perfect location for our English country wedding.” After looking around a number of different venues with her parents, they fell in love with the character and charm of Woodhall Manor. Emma says, “It’s a beautiful historical building, much like my old boarding school at Brandeston Hall. With large grounds for outside games, plenty of photo opportunities, including a rose garden, long fountain and pond, and accommodation for family, it was ideal. Miguel was excited to get married there as he wanted to introduce his family to the British culture, which is so different to Venezuela’s.” . FINDING THE ONE Emma had her heart set on a pre-loved dress for her big day. “Weddings in Switzerland are very different from England so I spent time searching online as there aren’t too many bridal shops where we live,” she explains. “I love the French designer Rime Aradaky and I found one of her beautiful two-piece designs in Bristol. I quickly contacted the bride and flew from Zürich to try it on. It was all very last minute, and my friend Anna met me on the way. We snapped it up and she took it back to her house to look after it as I couldn’t fly it back to Switzerland in my hand luggage! My parents picked it up a few months later. I owe so much to Anna!”