I decided to share my travel adventure to Angers, France to attend the wedding of one of my special design interns, Flavie. She was a member of the RSVP team for a year and Amy and I were excited to experience our first French wedding.
Day One
(And Day Two if you include time difference)
We headed to DFW on Wednesday, July 18 to get on a 1:00 p.m. plane stopping in Boston for less than an hour. At 6:45 p.m. we were boarding the plane to Paris, France arrived around 7:30 a.m.on Thursday July 19th. My husband, Kelton and I had 2 hours to catch the TGV fast train to Angers. After a relaxing train ride, we arrived in Angers at 12:11 p.m. Along day of travel, but the 70 degree weather was a pleasant greeting.
Le jardin du Mail…very close to our Hotel
Enjoying the beautiful flowers at the
Le jardin du Mail
After all of the travel, we retired back to our hotel for a much needed restful evening.
Day Three
This is the cathedral that Flavie & Sam will be married!
After some local exploring in Angers, we needed to take a nap! After getting some much needed rest, we walked to the city center. The people were extremely friendly and it is a quaint country village. We wanted to check out the local scenery and locate the wedding venue.
A fortress and sumptuous residence built in the 13th Century as a military enclosure and prison
A beautiful sculptured garden that took the place of the castle’s moat
To wrap up the day, we met up with family and friends of the couple at the ‘Les deux A’ Bar for a relaxing time including French cheese and wine.
Day Four
It’s finally the wedding day!
Catholic Cathedral of Saint Maurice
The Cathedral was breathtaking and completely different from any wedding I had been to in the states.
Beautiful Flavie walking down the isle with her father at 10:00 am!
The couple reciting their vows
Because the attendees were mixed with both French and American, the ceremony (most of it at least) was in both French and English. Following the ceremony we walked over to the Chateau d’Angers for a reception and toast to the new couple.
The reception with champagne lasted until 1:30 p.m.
Afterwards, we boarded a bus that would take us to our next and final destination for the day…the venue for the dinner and party!
The Chateau De Chambiers in Route De Beauvau, Durtal (45 min. from the ceremony)
The reception and party were located on the Chateau’s grounds just a small walk away.
The entry to the Chateau
After exploring the Chateau grounds, it was time for refreshments and h’ordeuvres…
The signature cinnamon Schnapps cocktail with straws Flavie made!
The tables were named after the countries Flavie & Sam had been to together instead of numbers.
The bride taking a much deserved break!
The guest book
The couple’s table with a beautiful centerpiece
The wedding flowers
The traditional French wedding cake!
The party consisted of LOTS of food, dancing, and an open bar! Flavie’s French friends had put together a video of photos of the couple for the guests to enjoy.
The French really, really know how to party! The first bus came to pick us up around 2 am and the next would be 3:30 am!
Day Five
(Voila)
There was a traditional brunch the next day at the party venue, but we had to catch the train back to Paris so we couldn’t attend.
(To see the differences between a traditional French wedding & American wedding go here.)
This was such a great experience and we are so grateful that we were able to participate in the festivities. With all that said, I am glad to be home. Sorry for the delay of the post, but hey, blame it on jet lag. 
