The day before the wedding we went to meet Maria from weddingsinplaya to finalise the wedding plans and to get some insight so we knew what to expect. We arrived in Playa del Carmen and it was so busy! We managed to get parked and went to try to find the meeting place. The whole town was awash with tourists wandering the fantastically lit streets choosing from the many wonderful looking restaurants and bars, browsing the shops…and of course…us, running late! We had wandered in the wrong direction for a while and eventually, back on track met with Maria half an hour late! But instantly it didn’t matter, Maria shrugged it off and sat us down to show us some pictures of other Mayan weddings she had arranged. We were really excited and the butterflies started in my tummy almost immediately! Maria explained to us the Mayan beliefs and told us a little of the ceremony and we were already blown away. We chatted for a while of our own and Maria’s past travels and got even more excited to be with a likeminded traveller, explorer and adventurer like Maria. We instanly clicked and it was like chatting with an old friend. We arranged to meet in the morning at Paamul (where we are staying) and Maria recommended a great local restaurant to eat at in Playa and we said our farwells until tomorrow. We headed for the restaurant, a new spring in our step with the anticipation of the next days wedding! Alex had goat burrita and I stuck to Quesadillas which were great and we got even more excited looking forward to our 11th wedding.
The morning flew around and before we knew it we were getting ready for
our first wedding of the year.
We had washed Alex’s shirt the night before in the shower and luckily it was dry, it could have done with an iron of course but who would know it??
We dressed in our all white clothes as asked by the Shaman (to represent purity) and removed any metals we were wearing including our rings and started to gather our offerings for the Gods. Maria arrived and had a tour of Peggy and a coffee and within minutes Dean Sanderson the photographer arrived and we made him a Yorkshire brew to shake of his night of tequila. The Shamen arrived and we were introduced and they went to get ready while we finished our drinks with Maria and Dean.
Maria has been planning weddings for 10 years and is all about making the day your own. She believes that to be yourself on your wedding day is so important and says ‘if you can dream it, we can make it happen’. She is fun, loves life and takes it by the horns and we loved her from the second we met.
Dean has also been a photographer at the top of his game for 10 years in Canada and recently moved his business to Mexico so that he can do his job the way HE wants to in a part of the world he loves. Sick of social expectations in the Western World even as successful as he is, he decided he wanted ‘to give back’ instead of to try to take as much as possible. Both himself and Maria work closely within the community here on the Mayan Riviera and Dean supports local schools and businesses by giving a percentage of his earnings from every job he does. They are both amazing people and I respect them both very much after only meeting them for a short time. They both believe in living life to the full; making considerate decisions for yourself and the people around you and trying to make a difference where possible, however large or small.
Once we had finished chatting and the Shamen were ready we headed to
the beach, hand in hand and as nervous as ever!
See what happens next on our travelling wedding adventure.
Everything always seems to turn out really well for you….and if the photo posted elsewhere of you and Alex at the wedding then I can only imagine how wonderful Dean’s photos are going to be…can’t wait 🙂
Maria was a real find and even to recommending a restaurant for you was really kind of her. It’s so nice to read in your blogs when you hit it off with so many people…who quickly become friends.
I am sure looking forward to the next installment of your Mayan wedding….and oh the beach pictured above looks so tantalizing perfect. What kind of temps are you coping with now? Happy trails…. xx
We are so lucky to find so many gems out there who are willing to help us out. Maria is just a superstar and knows Playa and the surrounding area like the back of her hand! She only works with the best service providers and found us the most beautiful shamen around!! She does it all, speaks the language, knows the people and finds the perfect spot! We love her! And as for Dean and his images…a picture speaks a thousand words and the sneak peak he has given us SCREAMS perfection so Im excited to see the wedding pics too!
The beach in Playa was lovely, we have been blessed to see some stunning parts of the world so far but the beaches here are out of this world and the temperature in Paamul was perfect. Not too hot to sit out and a lovely breeze coming in off the caribbean! perfect for lounging about!! Xx
We were really excited, Dean and I , to meet with these 2 ‘crazy English people’ who have such a fun project like 30 weddings in the whole world! It’s been a real pleasure to meet w two of the most fun, kindhearted and loving persons I met (i know i will see them again, in Italy …. I now want to plan also one of their European weddings in July!) and the wedding was amazing, full of emotions, beautiful moments (like when Lisa dropped her offerings of objects belonging to mothers and grandmother) and the lovely lunch and margaritas that followed. You are an inspiration to me lo live more, laugh more and live more.
THANK YOU!
Maria
http://www.weddingsinplaya.com
Thanks Maria! We loved your passion and energy for the whole thing. We couldn’t have met a better person to plan our Mayan wedding! Italian passion with endless Mexican knowledge! Perfecto! Can’t wait to see you in Italy! xx
I can’t wait to read all about the wedding and see some photos.
Judy
I just love hearing about all the amazing people you meet!! It’s so fun and inspiring!!
We can’t wait to see the pictures either! Can’t wait to share them with everyone, it was such a special day and I have no doubt the pictures will reflect the day perfectly! X
Gulp…gulp..gulp… I love that everyone loves you…you could never have a better gift .xxxx
Been brought up well that’s all. 🙂 xx