Today I'd like to share some photographs I took during a short weekend spent in Milan, where I attended my first Italian wedding.
It was a wonderful few days in Italy - the weather was perfect and cooling down after a hot summer, but not quite cold enough for a jacket. We arrived there on the Friday morning and left on the Sunday for a short, whirlwind visit! Although I had stopped over during the summer, it was a completely different experience. The streets were no longer deserted, instead there was an exciting buzz about the city, as people had returned back revived after their summer vacations.
The wedding was held on the Saturday afternoon in a town just outside of Milan, Bergamo. What a place!! Bergamo is actually town split into two separate sections, the upper and the lower. The upper part is the original town, made up of old buildings dating back hundreds of years, and has stunning views of the town and its surrounding areas - sometimes even Milan on a clear day. The lower section, on the other hand, is slightly more modern and where all the business and work takes place.
We attended the wedding ceremony in the lower part of Bergamo, in a beautiful Catholic church. What's amazing about some of the Catholic churches in Italy, is their misleading architecture. From the outset of many of the churches, you see a flat, one dimensional building, that almost blends in with the houses surrounding it. However, once you step inside, they usually extend all the way back, making them far more magnificent than expected! There is actually a church in Milan where an artist painted an illusion at the altar, to give church-goers the notion that it was the usual depth of a few metres. In fact, there wasn't enough space to build a normal altar and this one is almost flat - check out the Santa Maria presso San Satiro chuch here!
Well, I could go on and on about the wedding, but just to give an overview, it was wonderful. Typically Northern Italian weddings are held for smaller groups of people - there were around 80 people. The reception was located in a beautiful country manor a little bit outside the city. The food was, as expected, sensational, but I don't think I've ever eaten so much in my life. From the initial aperitivo of drinks and rooms filled with cheeses and cold cuts, came the five course meal, including two pasta dishes! While weddings in some cultures mean drinks and merriment, in Italy they just mean FOOD! And a bit of good wine of course...!
If you ever get the chance to attend a wedding in italy - do so! But be prepared to come back a few sizes larger...!! Here are some of my snaps from the wedding and walking around Milan :)
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