A Wedding in Simsbury

To end my 2 week long trip in the states, Travers and I headed to Simsbury, Connecticut, for our friends' wedding. Tim and Jess have been friends of ours for years now. We first met Tim in San Francisco through a mutual friend, and Travers and him instantly hit it off. So well in fact that when the three of us would go out together, I often felt like the third wheel. So I was thrilled when Tim told us that his long-distance girlfriend, Jess was going to be moving out to San Francisco! And just like Travers and Tim, Jess and I hit it off immediately, and she is now one of my closest friends.

Now my parents can correct me, but I don't think I've ever been to Connecticut. If I have, it must have been when I was little because I don't remember. Either way, I did not know that it was such a beautiful state! Travers and I flew into Hartford, rented a car, and drove the 15 minutes or so to Simsbury, where the wedding was going to take place. All the houses we passed by were beautiful, the grass and trees were so green, and everything we saw looked like the picturesque place to live. We arrived at the Simsbury Inn, checked in, and immediately got back in the car to explore the town some more, finding a cute tavern down the street called The Iron Frog, which was the perfect find after our frog incident leaving Sarasota. We knew this would be our last moment of rest and relaxation, as both of us were in the wedding party, and we would be busy all weekend.

A few hours later, as predicted, we were enveloped in the wedding weekend. There was a casual gathering at First and Last Tavern to start it off. Then Friday, the girls had a luncheon and Jess' parents' house, followed by mani and pedi's at a nearby salon. The guys spent Friday on a tour of ESPN. They got to see the studios of where all of their favorite shows were recorded and Travers even saw one or two celebrities. Unfortunately, he could only get a cardboard cut out of Tim Tebow, but still a pretty decent life size picture of him.  We then all met at the church and went through rehearsal, followed by a delicious rehearsal dinner at the Simsbury 1820 House. Most of us were staying at the Simsbury Inn so we headed back there and took over the small hotel bar.  Staying up much later than we should have, we finally got to bed, only to wake even earlier the next morning so I could get my makeup and hair done!

Saturday arrived, and with a bit of grogginess, all the girls met at the beauty salon to get our makeup and hair done. Jess brought coffee, bagels and champagne, and we had a fun time getting pretty and enjoying some girl time before the ceremony. The guys have it so easy on the day of, as they can roll out of bed half an hour or less before they have to leave, throw on their tuxes, and head out the door. But it was all worth it because we all came out with beautiful hairstyles (one of the best I've had as a bridesmaid in a wedding), and wonderful makeup. Here we all are in the backyard of Jess' parents house about ready to leave for the church.




The wedding was beautiful. Jess looked amazing in her dress, and you could see Tim was trying to hold back the tears as he saw her walking down the aisle. For a catholic ceremony, it was pretty quick, and we all drove to the Simsbury 1820 House for some after cerermony photos.
















After photos were done, we went to The Riverview, where the reception was taking place.  We had a private bridal suite we could hang out in until they were ready to announce us. And our own waiter that brought us appetizers and drinks!  After announcing the bridal party and the new married couple, we had dinner, listened to some wonderful speeches by Maid of Honor, Jane, and Best Man, Sean, then we danced and danced and danced till they stopped the music.

Overall it was a fabulous weekend. It was so great to see Tim and Jess since we haven't seen them since we moved to Geneva. And to see some other friends that were there as well. We were so happy to be a part of this special event for them, and we know they will be lifelong friends of ours.

Sunday was our last day in the states, and we had a drive ahead of us to JFK.  We said our goodbyes and hopped in our car and headed to New York to catch our flight back to Geneva.  On our way, we made a small stop at a town called Newtown. Some of you may have never heard of it, but it is famous. Because its where Travers was born. And it happened to be on our way from Simsbury to JFK so we had to stop.  After taking a few wrong turns in the town, we finally found the main drag, bringing back lots of memories for Travers. And then finally finding the actual house that he spent the first few years of his life growing up in.

We drove through the town, passing by the General Store, and the Cornerstone, where he went to pre-school.











And on our way out of town, we stopped at the Ice Cream Shop, where his parents used to take him and his sister, Suzy. It was your picturesque ice cream shop, with parents and their kids getting ice cream after playing baseball, with teenagers having their first date, and with lots of locals who come there every day. So we bought two cones and sat on a bench in the sun, soaking it all in before hopping back in our car for the airport.

Just before getting to JFK we made an unexpected stop in Rye, New York. This is where Travers' Aunt and Uncle lived when he was younger, and he had spent several vacations in Rye with the family. We hunted down their old house (no idea how Travers remembers where these places are. he has an amazing memory), and just as we were finding it, a car that was in front of us, pulled into the driveway of the house! So, unfortunately, we could only take a picture from the street, and with the long driveway, its tough to tell, but Travers was pretty sure this was it. (Tante, maybe you can verify it?)

Finally at JFK, we called our families one last time to say goodbye, and got on our plane back to Geneva. I was happy to be going home and having a relaxing week before heading off again on our next adventure....Amsterdam. To be continued...