Best Wedding Ever

 

 Lately, more and more of the people I know who are of "marriageable age" are very reluctant to do it. Not because my generation has any more commitment issues than the previous ones, but because the traditional way of getting married is becoming unacceptable for most. 

The extreme public exposure, the many embarrassing customs, the extreme pressure of having to do everything just right or else people will talk, the awkwardness of having to kiss over 100 people you don't know are enough to put even the most extroverted among us off a traditional, parent-imposed wedding. Oh, and the religious directives...don't even get me started on those!

Which is why our friends' wedding this weekend was a breath of fresh air. Spontaneous, sketchy, relaxed and very rock'n'roll. An example to follow.

First, there was the civil ceremony. Giggles, jokes, teary-eyed parents, all standard fare.

Then the less-than-standard fare: a live gig with a cover band consisting of 4 insanely talented young guys.

We were thrilled with their skill, they were thrilled at our response. I see a great future for these guys.

Then, in a matter of minutes, it was out of fancy clothes, into the usual gear and off to the mountains, where the party continued until the sun came up. There was gulyas...

 ... there was a camp fire,

...there was plenty of booze...and the rest is history. Which will remain unrecorded. For the sake of our reputations.

However unsteady and light-sensitive we felt the next morning, the glorious autumn sun made it impossible to stay indoors. So off we went on Mr. & Mrs. Coman's first hike as a married couple.

 

It was also little Cody's first hike ever (he did very well, except he didn't see much of the scenery, as he was asleep the whole time).

 Everybody had a whale of a time (or a sheep-dog of a time, to be in keeping with the monsters that attacked us at one point of the hike), and I'm sure that everyone made mental notes of how things will be done at their own weddings, inspired by our friends' choices. This wedding weekend was so relaxed, personalised, fun and original that it has surely become a trend-setter.

Good job, Mircea & Laura! May your life together be nothing but a succession of weekends like this one! And thanks for the pictures :)

Indian Summer in Transylvania

There's something magical about the light in September. It has a unique way of making the usual seem warmer, calmer, more enchanting. It adds a new glowing dimension even to things that were beautiful before.

We've had many such honey-coloured days this September. And last Sunday's spontaneous outing to Cheile Turzii proved to be brilliantly (un)planned on just such a day.

Getting there bright and early, we had the paths all to ourselves while we leisurely walked the length of the gorge. 

Trying to find a nice wall to climb was only a tough job because there are so many! In such beautiful spots! 

But by the time the noisy tourists came and filled the gorge, we were already hanging by our fingertips high above them.

 It was a great day in all respects. But it seems that someone before us wasn't so lucky...
 

 And just to convince you of the magical properties of September's sunlight, here is another gratuitous forest shot: