🗁Added 143 photos to album UK, Jan & Feb 2020.
Time for a trek to the other side of the country for KitB and M's wedding. I took the train to London (dinner with TomSka) then nightbus to Penzance. I picked up (or they picked me up) some of Kit's family members (including Pedro the poodle) and we picked up pasties and boxes of other wedding stuff, and drove it to St Austell.
The venue was a beautiful grand house on the beach. I took my Best Man responsibilities as seriously as possible, helped with unpacking and setting up and organising, did a lot of washing up, made many pots of tea for two dozen people, and most importantly, de-panicked KitB as necessary.
At midnight before the ceremony, Kit was messaging me for help with his vows, mixed with barely coherent notes about all the other things that needed doing the next morning. We ended up working on his vows in an etherpad, and I took responsibility for remembering and delegating all of the other stuff.
There was a great wedding planner to help too with setting up the furniture and decorations. All of the guests from both families eagerly chipped in. It's nice to have a group of people who are keen to have tasks delegated to them, and everything got done on time. I made sure Kit got dressed, and ironed his pocketsquare, and didn't lose the rings. 15 minutes before the ceremony we were both hungry, and had an emergency crumpet in the kitchen.
It seemed all of a sudden that it was time for the ceremony to start. I didn't realise that the Best Man stands at the front with the Groom while the Bride and her father walk down the aisle. It felt like I was giving Kit away. There were about 25 guests. The ceremony was backed by big windows and a sea view, and led by the local registrar and an eccentric family friend. M started crying almost immediately, so I did too.
There were lovely readings, and lovelier vows, and paperwork. We all went outside to throw confetti, then the professional photographers took Kit and M down to the beach.
The meal after the wedding was amazing. A four course vegetarian meal, with the vegan versions being almost identical. I will never forget the rhubarb and white chocolate pavlova. I even got a vegan cheese plate! During the meal there were beautiful emotional speeches. Very emotional. Kit and M's families are so loving and proud of their kids. I wrangled out of doing a speech thanks to Kit's siblings both volunteering instead.
We spent the rest of the evening playing board games. Some people danced. Kit and M had their 'first dance' when nobody was looking (except me, see photos).
At about 7pm we ate wedding cake, and at 9 we had pasties. I ate too much.
The next day some people left, but many stayed. We played more board games, and ate chips. I did a lot of washing up again.
I'm looking forward to the professional photos.. stay tuned.
