Summer Prague Wedding

Anika and Christian
Summer 2008
Protestant ceremony in St. Nicholas Church

We asked one of our dear couples to share their wedding story with you. Enjoy reading the real wedding story of Anika & Christian and follow their destination wedding planning step by step – from their romantic New Year’s Eve engagement through choosing the romantic city of Prague as their wedding destination, to a fun wedding party that finished at 7am. Anika & Christian’s wedding was a truly Big white wedding and we are happy the lovely couple let us be part of it and now to share it with you.

How we met.

My husband and I met 6 years ago at a Christmas ball in Dortmund. Because we were working and living in different cities, we saw each other only twice a month. The longer our relationship lasted, the more difficult it was to say good bye every Monday morning. We had been together for four years and we got engaged on New Years Day 2006.

The Engagement.

Christian proposed during a late breakfast the morning after New Years Eve and surprised me with a beautiful ring. We agreed that before we got married, we want to live together for some time, to try a normal life together. Through out our engagement this time brought us feelings that we belong together and soon we would wed, was beautiful.

Location for our wedding.

Christian was offered a great job outside of Germany; in the beautiful city of Prague. We decided for a life together in the Czech Republic, which we then choose as our wedding destination. Our dreams and vision of our wedding were always leading towards a destination wedding, moving to Prague and getting to know this wonderful romantic city had convinced us that Prague was the right place for our special day.

The Wedding Agency.

At the time of our decision, I still had 6 months to stay in Germany. Based on that and also the demand of the planning, we decided to use services of a Czech wedding agency. When looking on the Internet, our attention was caught instantly by White – Prague Wedding Agency (www.destination-wedding.cz). The web pages were very easy to understand, graphically very nice and reflected our style. After that, everything went very fast – we personally met with Mrs. Petra Hofman from White Agency and were convinced by her professionalism and incredible style of understanding; we felt very safe and confident. Within a short time, we begun visiting churches and locations for our wedding celebration and party. Communication with Petra was very pleasant and everything was easy to plan over the phone and email.

The Wedding Venue.

White Agency proposed many churches and venues for the celebration which we could decide from.

The Ceremony.

When deciding about the church, we didn't hesitate. We choose the marvelous baroque church of St. Nicholas at the Old Town Square which we passed on romantic walks through historical Prague.
The uneasy task for Petra was to find a location for our wedding celebration and 80 guests which would reflect our modern style and also reflect the traditional and romantic atmosphere in Prague.

The Evening Wedding Celebration.

Our wish was not only to celebrate an amazing wedding with our guests, but also to introduce our new home to them. Prague offers an incredible number of restaurants and wedding venues. After viewing many places we decided between two locations. One of them was Hergertova Cihelna, which is located right on the banks of Vltava River near the famous Charles Bridge with fascinating views and a great opportunity to have an open air wedding party. The other location was hotel Mandarin Oriental with an elegant aura, beautiful inside courtyard and unbelievably elegant and tastefully decorated Ball room. As you can’t predict the weather and we didn't want to depended on it, we decided for hotel Mandarin Oriental.

The Gardens.

We wanted to show our family and friends Prague from different angles, we decided to have the after ceremony toast and the photo shooting in the wonderful Vrtbovska Garden near the Prague Castle. Vrtbovska Garden is a beautiful Italian garden which became part of the world heritage UNESCO thanks to its baroque terraces and frescos. To make the transport from the church easier and more fun, Petra suggested a historical tram ride. The historical tram transported guests easily to the gardens and at the same time went through the most important and attractive places in Prague.

Wedding Planning.

The Wedding dress.

My image of the wedding dress was clear from the beginning – my wedding dress was supposed to be more of a dinner gown rather than a classical wedding gown; it was supposed to be very simple and also a little sexy. After a long search I fell in love with a very simple silk dress with an art breast pin with stones and pearls from the English designer Jenny Peckham.

Beginning the planning.

After a successful search for the wedding dress the creative and very detailed part of the wedding planning began. We wanted our white concept to be reflected in every little detail – white, velvet ribbons, wedding invitations, the church program and menu.

The Wedding Web Pages.

A very useful tool for our guests was the personal wedding web pages which White Agency prepared for us. They were very helpful for informing guests about the time plan; offer of suitable accommodation, gift list and also about Prague.

The Wedding Cake.

Due to the date of our summer wedding we didn't choose a traditional cream and marzipan wedding cake, but a lovely light strawberry cake with almonds and vanilla. According to some of our guests, it was the best cake they had ever tasted.

The Wedding Menu.

We happily accepted an invitation from the Mandarin Oriental and went for a wedding menu taste test. The result of this magical evening was this:
A Four course menu with salmon, asparagus soup, sorbet, beef filet with (fao grass) and rosemary potatoes, finished with a light fruit salad with mascarpone. To compliment the gala dinner we served excellent fresh ryzlink and noble wine from Bordeaux.

Flower decorations.

Our favorite flowers are white lilies and orchids which we wanted to be included in the bridal bouquet as well as the table decorations. After a consultation with Petra and the florist we choose: round tables with long white clothes, decorated with simple thin glass vases of different heights filled with lilies, orchids and other white flowers. The gorgeous vases were custom made for us and the realization of this concept was not easy; but I didn't regret it– I’ll never forget the breathtaking view in the Ball room of the hotel Mandarin when the doors first opened.

The Wedding Ceremony.

It was important to prepare a very romantic wedding ceremony, not only for us but also for our guests which we wanted to include readings from the witnesses and family. We also wrote our wedding vows; which made this important moment even more romantic and personal.

The Music.

Our memories are traditionally connected with music that warms our heart and therefore making this choice was very important.
We decided to have a string quartet for the ceremony, as well as an opera singer – both were really nice for the church atmosphere. The evening entertainment was taken over by the DJ who played our favorite songs all night. Despite our nervousness we even managed the first dance without any complications, thanks to a few private dance lessons Petra had arranged for us in our apartment.

The Night Before The Wedding.

The evening before the wedding we organized a dinner for our families and witnesses, who welcomed this opportunity to get to know each other better. At the end of the night Christian and I parted and spent the last night before the wedding separated. I have to say that this only enhanced the excitement awaiting the wedding.

The Wedding day.

Preparations.

After a sleepless night the bridal preparations began early in the morning. I was feeling nervous and the view of never ending rain outside the window didn't make me feel happy at first, but knowing that rain on your wedding day brings happiness my father and I left in a gorgeous historical Bentley to the church.

The Wedding Ceremony.

If someone asked me what the most beautiful moment of my wedding day was, I would say without hesitation that it was the moment when my father and I were entering the church to Canon in D from Pachelbel and I saw my future husband standing at the end of the aisle. At that moment, I didn't notice the fairytale flower decorations, or guests looking at us, but only him.
We were happy that we decided to have the whole ceremony recorded on DVD, because we were actually not able to take everything in. Thanks to Petra and her team everything went smoothly despite the bad weather.

The afternoon program – historical tram ride and congratulation line in the Vrtbovska Garden.

The historical tram ride from the church to the Vrbovska garden brought the expected release. Our guests were thrilled by the look of the Gardens so much that some visited them again the following day so they could see the wonderful views of Prague.

The wedding reception.

The afternoon small break turned out to be a great idea and everyone welcomed the time to freshen up. My bridesmaid surprised us with a bunch of red balloons in the Mandarin Oriental which we let off into the sky together from the courtyard.
Surprises such as the guest book, unforgettable guests speeches and disposable cameras made the wedding even more special. After the first dance when all the guests started dancing, we finally relaxed.
Unfortunately we did not manage to set up the bridesmaid and the best man as we planned, but we truly managed to organize a brilliant party. We danced until the sun came up and we finished the magnificent night by watching the sun rise from the terrace of our suite.
Our wedding has not only fulfilled our wishes, dreams and expectations, but has brought us to a magical world of never to be forgotten memories of a beautiful wedding.

Photogallery