The fairy tale story of Nandra Devi Mansaram and Marc Thomas Albinger takes you through beautiful locales all over the world before culminating in a romantic wedding. The couple met in 2007, and two and half years later they were engaged. Their shared values make them ideal life partners.

Marc proposed on the rocky grounds of the scenic Caldera Cliff on the Greek island of Santorini, which overlooks the Mediterranean. The location was perfect, the proposal was perfect and it was a perfect beginning of a lovely life together.

After procrastinating for two years after the proposal, Nandra and Marc decided it was time to officially say “I Do.” Marc, who is Catholic, wanted a simple wedding. But Nandra, a typical Indian, always dreamt of a grand, traditional celebration. What followed was a lovely confluence of both cultures.

The couple planned a family trip to Europe during June-July 2012. Stunning beautiful locales in Germany, France, Italy and England tugged at Marc’s heart and he wanted the ceremony there. Nandra acquiesced, stalled her plans for the Indian celebration and began planning a wedding abroad. The couple made their own arrangements. Nandra’s family and Marc’s daughter were present for an intimate ceremony held at an 18th century Villa del Balbianello in Italy with the stunningly gorgeous Lake Camoin the background.

After their lovely vacation, the couple was ready to take on the Indian wedding. They began preparing for the December 22, 2012 wedding in August. The groom’s guests received a classy silver scroll invitation, while the bride’s guests received a red and gold invite. For an added special wed on 22nd December 2012 and started wedding preparations in August. The groom’s guests received a classy silver scroll invitation while the bride’s guests received a red and gold invite. The couple put in a special thought in the invitations thanking their parents.
The wedding was held at Coral Gables, Florida. The venue was a charming three level building complete with authentic European ambiance, grand marble staircases, high atrium ceilings, huge balconies, architectural antiques and open terraces.

The bride and groom arrived in a Rolls Royce for the wedding. The ceremony took place in the indoor courtyard of the first level, after which the guests moved into the English bar room for cocktails. A four column gold mandap decorated with orchids, black/red roses and hanging crystal votives was created for the ceremony.

The venue was done up in tall centerpieces, off-white hydrangeas, black magic roses, jamesstorie red orchids, mockara orchids, and purple dendrobiums. The deco-ration theme was gold, red and bling. The programs, designed by the couple, had a complete expla-nation of Hindu customs along with a verse from the Rig Veda.

Dinner was served on the Royal Mezzanine and Sky view Terrace on the second floor. Tables were laid with burgundy / red table cloths that had Indian / Moroccan motifs done in gold, tall center-pieces, charger plates and gold chivari chairs.The reception was arranged on the third floor of the Cruz Ballroom and Terraza De Leon. This level was accentuated with up lighting was accentuated with up lighting in aqua, lavender and pink shades. White leather glow furniture dotted the terrace. Nandra designed a candy station for the reception as well as a gorgeous three-storied cake topped with the couple’s monograms. Music was played by a traditional Indian Tassa band. There was a mix of love songs, western music and traditional Indian wedding songs.

Marc and Nandra suggest that would-be couples take off from their work at least a couple of weeks before the wedding so that everything can be arranged flawlessly.

Photos Courtesy: Domino Arts Photography and Video 954-776-9472 www.dominoarts.com   Vendors VENUES The Cruz Building 305-508-9500 www.CruzBuildings.com PHOTOGRAPHY Dominoarts Photography 954-776-9472 www.dominoarts.com PRIEST Pandit Bimal Maharaj 954 594-6248 Pt.Bimal@yahoo.com COORDINATOR Meher Designs 305-463-0652 meherdesigns@aol.com CINEMATOGRAPHY A&A Video Creations 786-208-3545 www.cinematic-memories.com DJ / MC Liquid DJS 954-399-9896 www.liquiddjs.com PHOTO BOOTH 84 West Studios 954-236-9000 www.partytimedjs.com FLORIST Floral Productions, Corp 305-772-6252 viviancolls@yahoo.com CAKE Cake Designs by Edda 305-445-4600 eddapiness@hotmail.com DÉCOR Solaris Mood 954-966-7814 solarismood@gmail.com MAKEUP Siufer 786-274-0123 Miamimakeupartist@gmail.com HAIR JPenn Hair 786-306-5463 jip122078@yahoo.com

Marriage is a reality clothed in the magical attire of fantasy. It is a fairy tale that has its charming tentacles all over our minds and matter. Most often parents live to see this auspicious occasion in their young one’s lives. Sons and daughters wait to receive blessings from their elder generation on this day. This is the day when two minds unite in a bond of infinite love and endless possibilitiess of all their “firsts.” She then found Anil who was down on his knees holding a diamondring.

Different cultures have different ways of celebrating this spotlight-occasion. The Indian way of marriage is well-known throughout the world as one of the most extravagant and lavish ceremonies. Its charm and brilliance draw people even from other parts of the world to celebrate their one and only best occasion in the Indian way.

One important aspect of the Indian marriage is the varmala. Varmala is also known as jaimala. This is a garland, sewn with flowers of different colours. Although there are different occasions in which such garlands are being used, like welcoming a guest into the house or respecting a chief guest or in order to celebrate the victory of a person in some competitions, varmala is the specially made marriage garland. Varmala is exchanged between the bride and groom during the marriage.

Marriage is the occasion of the first big and socially accepted exchange between two people. The two human beings who expect a life together with dreams and many prospects come together and through the exchange of the varmala to become one. The concept of varmala is as old as the Indian civilization.

Several details of garlands and Varlama ceremony can be traced back to ancient Indian epics, where not just humans, but even gods and goddesses have the Varmaala ceremony before marriage. This proves that Varmala exchange is a ritual that was part of the Vedic culture. The ritual started in prehistoric times when husbands were chosen in “Swayamvar”. In swayamvar, it is said that a list of suitors would be invited and when the girl from the list of suitors would identify the husband she wishes for she would garland them. This ritual was called Jaimala. It is an important ritual in Hindu matrimonial ceremony since it is the first ritual which signifies that socially the bride has accepted groom has her husband.

Mostly, varmalas are made of rose flowers and jasmine along with other decorative shiny adornments. The fragrance of roses is kept intact and jasmine flowers add to the beauty of it. These days’ artificial flowersvarmalasare in fashion too, these are usually made of fabric, net, embellishments and foil. Apart from being a cheaper, viable option, and having a longer shelf life, the benefit with these varmalas is that they do not leave color stain on expensive trousseau unlike the real flowers.

The first turn is of the bride’s to garland her prospective husband and welcome him with flowers. She has to put the garland around the groom’s neck. In North Indian marriages, there would be a friendly hassle between the party with bride and groom in an attempt to help each of them put the varmala on each other. Finally, the groom decorates the bride’s neck with the varmala in his hand too.

This denotes the commencement of the matrimonial ceremony. The jaimala ceremony indicates the value of sharing and suggests the magnitude of love and harmony. Only through the fragrance of love can they conquer each other. This being the message of jailama ceremony, it still continues as a legacy of the Vedic tradition.

Wedding Garland: The Ritual of Varmala

Can two people from different parts of the world find one another? Hard to believe, but it is possible. Parita Gohil lived in New Zealand with her parents when Rajdeep Parmar was in the US on a student visa studying pharmacy. The couple and their families belong to BAPS Swaminarayan, and through santos, biodatas were exchanged. With all the details looking favorable, a meeting was arranged between the families. After much traveling to India and the United States so that Parita and Rajdeep could meet one another and their respective families, the match was made!

Once engaged, wedding planning began immediately and lasted seven months. Parita went to India to do much of her wedding shopping, though the 20-day trip went by very quickly. Rajdeep began organizing the wedding, which was to be held at the BAPS Swaminarayan mandir in Boynton Beach, Florida.

The special day came on February 2, 2013, and the couple felt blessed to be married in the mandir in the midst of splendid decorations.

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