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| Chateau de Fajac le Relenque, south of Toulouse. |
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| The view from our chateau. |
Unkept wild flowers of varying heights adorned the chairs on the ends of each row of the ceremony space, while an antique bicycle held the sign for where cocktails and dinner had taken place the night before. The view from here consisted of white upholstered lawn chairs, hay bales with napkins for sitting, and a horizon of gold, brown and green fields with asymmetrical lines running across sloping hills and valleys. A basket of different cheeses, still with their rinds and multiple “pain du jour,” sat on a table across from the crepes station, where four crepe griddles were situated to prepare sweet and savory crepes for about 60 sleepy-eyed travelers.
We just had ourselves a fabulous wedding experience and we had the yawns and laughs to prove it. Kate and Jason offered each other their nuptials on a hillside chateau in the south of France in front of an intimate crew of friends and family. Everything from her lace dress, to the local flowers, to the handwritten calligraphy table tent cards, to the French-style wedding cake of profiteroles, was gorgeous. The collective spirit of community and the richness of heart-ful conversation among old and new friends was magnificent, and I came away feeling celebratory of a dear friend and her wedding as well as motivated to keep in touch with the attending gang.
Of all the things French in this weekend, my favorite moments were in the chateau where three ladies and I stayed, along with the bridal families and close friends. We had a resident cat sneaking in naps on our beds and shutters that actually closed up the windows at night. We slept above a communal kitchen where bottles of wine and sparkling water were held for the multiple celebrations around the wedding: the pre-wedding welcome, the cocktail hour, the after hours, the farewell brunch, the day after-wedding dinner. The chateau had cobblestone floors, creaky wooden staircases, and a hybrid sense of design with antiques scattered throughout its bedrooms, and IKEA-style floor lamps. There was a modernized bathroom with an enormous bathtub. The feeling of the place was welcoming. It invited guests to help themselves to wine, water, food in the fridge, seats, discussion, protection from the wind outside, quiet.
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| Guests arriving and mingling the night before the wedding. |
My Friday consisted of a road trip from Toulouse, a temporary detour through a ghost town, telling stories and meeting new friends while looking over a Monet-esque bucolic scene, and a bubble bath. My Saturday included brunch with the bride and friends, a liberating road trip with a fellow solo traveler, a wander through the town of Mezeres, a beautiful wedding and a dance floor that closed at 4 AM (and a bedtime closer to 5 AM). My Sunday invited a late morning awakening, two crepes, too much coffee, no more cheese, and a divine regroup on the previous night’s good fun, topped off with an exploration of Toulouse (and a successful drive with no GPS or directions snafus!).
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| DJ and the dance floor surpassing 3 AM. |
