Fifteen

It’s been 15 years since my husband and I were married. There are moments when it feels like a lifetime ago and others when it seems like yesterday. There are so many things that are hazy or that I have forgotten but other memories jump out at me like a jack-in-the-box – unexpected ones, seemingly silly things.

I remember the heat; the blazing, skin-scorching, white-hot sun. I remember my mum waking me and my maid-of-honour up one hour too early (it was a morning wedding). I remember the look of surprise on the photographer’s face when I opened the front door for him myself. It seems I was an exception to the general rule as the bride usually kept him waiting. I remember how cool it felt inside the 500 year-old church and how soothing to the eyes the relative dimness was after the mid-morning glare.

I remember my florist personally delivering my bouquet in a wicker basket that would not have been out of place in an episode of Little House on the Prairie. Strangely enough, I remember the fragrance I wore, Calvin Klein’s Sheer Obsession and that my new sling-back shoes squeaked a little bit when I walked. And I will never forget the look of utter surprise on my husband’s face when my girlfriends rushed to carry him up on their shoulders at the end of the wedding in a time-honoured Maltese tradition, while the guys did the same with me. I had forgotten to warn him. I thought it was done everywhere.

Maybe it’s easier to remember the little things because there are huge chunks that I just cannot recall; snippets of conversation, lost forever; food that I don’t even remember eating (did I even have a piece of cake?); people that I had forgotten were there. In retrospect, our photos were the best investment we could have made. They help to fill in those gaps that would otherwise be lost forever. If only digital cameras were more prevalent in 2003! But, notwithstanding all the lacunae in my memory, I remember without a doubt that, from start to finish, we had a wonderful time.

So today, I want to take a leaf out of our favourite Contessa’s book and share some more wedding memories with you. My husband (I think I should start calling him Mr D or maybe The American) and I were married in the church of St Mary of Jesus (popularly known as Ta Giezu in Maltese). It was not my first choice but, in hindsight, it was perfect. I must have frequented this church hundreds of times as a child with by beloved Nanna and my mum. Sadly, my Nanna died 3 years before our wedding but she is lies in the crypt of this same church. So perhaps it was more than fitting to have the ceremony there as I am sure she was with us in spirit. It’s not a big church but is richly decorated in the Baroque style and one of my favourite recollections of our day
is the gorgeous profusion of white flowers arrayed on the altars and around the chancel.

I wore an ivory Elena Della Rocca faux-strapless empire-line dress in lace over a chiffon underskirt and carried a bouquet of the reddest roses (I insisted on the darkest red) that my florist could find. Since he was a childhood friend, he obliged and completed the arrangement with baby’s breath and ivy tendrils, tying the whole thing together with a champagne-coloured ribbon edged with tiny pearl-coloured beads. It was the same colour as some of the embroidery on my dress and the dresses of my maid-of-honour and flower-girl. I walked up the aisle to Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’ and ended the ceremony with Mendelssohn’s ‘Wedding March’ – both very non-traditional choices for Malta – but when it comes to music both of us have very particular tastes.

Our reception was held at Villa Mdina, a 400 year-old townhouse in Naxxar that boasts a large garden and spacious rooms where guests can gather. We were lucky that friends and family from Canada, the United States, England and Australia travelled to Malta to be with us on our wedding day. At the time we were married, wedding cakes were traditionally either fruit(a British legacy) or almond (thank to our Sicilian neighbours). We chose a three-tiered almond cake but, these days, the sky’s the limit as far as cake flavours go.

Fifteen years later we hold this day close to our hearts and truly wish we could re-live some of its most special moments.

Some useful links for anyone planning a wedding in Malta:

Church: St Mary of Jesus, Rabat

Reception venue: Villa Mdina, Naxxar

Catering: Busy Bee, Msida

Flowers: Ron-Fleur, Rabat

Cars: Richardsons Garage (formerly Blue Angel Garage), Rabat

Photography: Gino Galea, Mosta

Dress: Centro Sposa, Hamrun