I am beyond thrilled to share with you the first installment in a five-part series from my amazing travels to India for Jen and Neil’s international destination wedding over winter break! I was so very fortunate to travel to the sleepy town of Goa on the southwestern coast of India, which is home to the groom and his family, to photograph the events and festivities of Jen and Neil’s nuptials. The bride was born in Bangalore, India, but both grew up in Dubai, which is where they met as teenagers. They ended up going to the same high school, and well…the rest is history.
I came to meet Jen through Stephanie (who is a mutual friend and also a bridesmaid) while we were all attending Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Jen and Stephanie were studying engineering while I was pursuing a teaching license and a bachelor’s in French. I specifically remember the evening where I first met Jen as Stephanie had invited her to meet us at Elliot’s Martini Bar in Old Town Fort Collins (best martinis in Fort Collins, seriously). We sipped on “dirty geese” and fancypants cocktails for the evening while getting to know each other, and I vividly remember how seriously sweet and endearing Jen was. I could tell she was one of those friends who would take care of you through-and-through; she seemed truly genuine and selfless. We continued to see each other at functions hosted by Stephanie and her family; the Easter party a few years back at Stephanie’s house where we played what seemed like hours of Scattergories is a holiday I will never forget.
For now, I’m going to pause the storytelling and wait until the next post to tell you more from India!
Today’s post features photos from a ceremony known as the roce, which is a tradition that takes place the night before the wedding that involves the smearing of coconut oil and milk on the bride and the bridesmaids. Per old customs, it’s a purification ceremony but has morphed into more of a cleansing and moisturizing tradition for the bride and her ladies as coconut oil and milk is ridiculously delicious for your skin. In its entirety, the ceremony lasts for around an hour and a half or so, as many blessings are given to the bride and her bridal party before the coconut amazingness happens; prayers are also read aloud beforehand. Songs are sung both before, after and during the cleansing ceremony, and everyone (generally those from the bride’s side) has a chance to dip their hands into the coconut milk and oil to smear it on the bride and bridesmaids’ forehead, cheeks, nose or forearms. I had never heard of such a ceremony before and was so excited to see what this actually looked like. While I didn’t do any coconut-smearing, I was happy to snap photos and watch the bride evolve into a coconut goddess.
Afterwards, the ladies de-coconut and the food is served, and holy cow…the food was good, and I mean GOOD. When it comes to spicy food, I’m kind of a weenie so I’ve never really been a fan of Indian food. But this food changed me. To be honest, I don’t even remember what I ate; I just remember that it was delicious and that I couldn’t get enough of it. I’ve never eaten that much curry in my life and I’m sad that I’ve been missing out for some 27 years now. The horror!
The day wrapped up with plenty of beer and wine flowing freely and with a special dance performance from Jen’s cousins. Also, I’m pretty sure we danced to “Gangnam Style” more than once but that’s okay with me. So now, I invite you to sit back, relax, and peruse the gorgeous photos from Jen’s roce. A special thank you goes out to Kelly Misuraca for helping me document this event and for pretty much being my second-shooter for the entire trip; you lady, are the best and I love you! Now enjoy the photos!
Venue: Aguada Anchorage Resort
no comments