seaprincess

The set-up at dinner (La Uva) – 6 long tables of 8 plus the head table of 8. I gave Carolina absolutely no direction, except how many people were coming and if we wanted a head table or not. We used the space in front of the head table for our first dance. One of my fave pics that was taken on the grounds right near the gazebo.

Instead of working today, I thought I would put together some pics for you ladies to give you a better idea of what to expect. I will also include some non-pro pics that I have once I have the chance to upload them to Photobucket. The diesel cart that takes you to the ceremony. Fits about 5-6 ladies. The ceremony set-up on the beach. Musical trio - two guitars, one cheese grater played with a comb. The judge and Carolina (translating to English) on the left side, arch (same arch is used during gazebo weddings, but instead you walk through it down the path, rather than stand under it) The little cake topper that came in the package for free. The cake that came in the package - You get to choose the two icing colors, obviously I chose white and aqua. Our cake flavor was strawberry shortcake and it was fantastic!! The train that picked us up at the GP Bavaro lobby at 6pm to take us to dinner at La Uva on the GP Punta Cana property. This is the menu that Carolina makes up for the tables. Inside it lists the menu choices you make when you arrive. (The stones we brought to decorate the table, and our photog placed them on the menu for visual interest) [

Quote: Originally Posted by MilitaryMrs.s-to be Hey Ladies, What is everybody doing for music? I'm thinking about bringing a IPOD dock?? but do we know if we can hook speakers up to it for ceremony music?? They do have speakers for the ceremony b/c of the mic, and I witnessed another couple use their own music for the ceremony. You might want to burn a CD of your ceremony music though b/c it may be simpler and then use the iPod dock for your reception?

Did 35min on the elliptical, 1/2 of resistance and 45 minutes of yardwork last night....honestly, my push-mower gets my heart rate up as much as the elliptical!

Quote: Originally Posted by Ryan's girl No word of a lie, my dress came out cleaner after my TTD than it was after the wedding/reception. I had to clean some sand out of it, but that was it. Ditto!!!!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by DEH83 For those ladies that were married already at the GP - were you married in the Gazebo or on the beach? I have concerns about both now from reading some comments!! On the beach, i hear there is a security guard that keeps the "lurkers" at bay. But what about wind? was you hair and dress blowing all over the place? And the gazebo - I have hear about it being close to the pool...but also we are looking at about 40 guests. I know now that there is space for them around the gazebo, but can they actually see what's happening inside the gazebo? Thank you!! Beach - The day I was married it was super, super windy on the beach b/c we had storms that day. My hair was pinned down except for a few loose pieces in the front, which did blow around where it wasn't pinned. Everyone could hear despite the wind b/c they have a mic for the ceremony, but we had a family member film the ceremony and most of it we can't hear b/c of the wind hitting the mic on the camera. As far as my dressing blowing around, it was lace so it was pretty heavy and it wasn't an issue. The thing with the wind is that one day it could be really windy and another day it could be really calm on the beach (like the day after our wedding). Unfortunetly you can't control that aspect. For the gazebo, the guests should be able to see you b/c there is a pretty wide opening and they sit in front...possibly the ones on the outside of the rows may have to look through gazebo openings on the side. I'm pretty sure that everyone would be able to see pretty well. The gazebo has a nice archway too which made for a beautiful sight when the bride walked down the aisle. I may have some pics of the gazebo b/c we rehearsed the night before in front of the gazebo...if I find them I will post them

Great pics! I LOVE the one on the beach where your DH is on his knee, so beautiful!! Congrats!

Ours was an hour and a half....by the end we were exhausted b/c we were fighting with the waves....if you are going to more than on location then you should probably have more time, but if you are only planning on staying on the beach then I would say 1hr-ish is probably sufficient.

Gorgeous pics! You look beautiful, congrats!

Quote: Originally Posted by bca33 I have no idea how I missed this thread! Here are my babies! Shadow is on the left and Chance is on the right. There are both 2 years old. Some more They are both beautiful! What kind of dogs are they? PS I have a friend who has two dogs named Shadow and Chance....what are the odds

Hi ladies! I just wanted to chime in about the gazebo set-up. When I was there I saw a wedding that had about 40 guests and there was plenty of room around the gazebo for the chairs. You can see that there are white stones in a square formation on either side of the path leading up to the gazebo. The chairs are set up on the stones and there was lots of room. The only downfall with the gazebo is that is is near the pool area and at 4pm they have games around the pool. I witnessed a wedding trying to compete with the noise, so it is something to consider. I personally chose the beach location b/c it was my vision and there were alot of on-lookers. Carolina does do a great job of keeping them at bay, and there is a security guard on the beach making sure people don't stand directly behind the arch and keep moving down the beach. The photos taken by my guests had a lot of speedo men in the background but my photog (Fran from photosouvenir) was able to take the shots to avoid having them visible or was able edit them out of the photos which is amazing! Truly either location is beautiful and offers plenty of space, so and it all depends on whether you want the sand between or toes or not!

Quote: Originally Posted by marise Crazy, I got proposed to the same way (except not on Christmas)! My eyes were barely open and I could swear I was dreaming because I was still half asleep! AND we have the same e-rings! Everything looks awesome! I love your raffia fans! Question how did you make the ribbon on the handles look so nicely wrapped and what kind of glue did you use to secure the ribbon on the handles? Thanks! Hahaha, what are the odds we had such a similar engagement? The fans were easily done using "Glue Dots" to hold the ribbon in place at the beginning and the end of the ribbon. In between, it just needs to be wrapped tightly to stay in place.

Welcome and congrats! I was married in the DR in January and it was pretty simple. It took about a month for us to get our certificate and there was no problems with names on the documents. Good luck and happy planning!

I am blessed to say I have had ZERO surgeries....I was born without wisdom teeth so I never had to have them removed -Thank god after hearing the stories on here!!

Congrats! Check out this thread for more info about the GPB. http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t14643-6

Our groomsmen threw us one, it was a great chance to celebrate with people who we know, like and would like to celebrate but who a) couldn't make it to the wedding would have liked to invite to the AHR, but the numbers would not make it possible. We made $2000 which was a nice bonus and it was a super fun night! I say if you want to do one, do it. I know of other DW brides who have had stags as well (on the forum and otherwise) so I don't think it matters that you are spending less on your wedding that a regular wedding.

Quote: Originally Posted by sperger military mrs - I just confirmed yesterday (and moved to a day earlier). The issue with that week is that it's right after Easter, and according to my TA, some of the staff takes off, some of the watersports may not be up and running, etc. Just one opinion though. We've been to the DR over Easter and its a huge holiday. Many domincans are on vacation, and our experience was at a resort without a private beach and the locals all head to the beach for the weekend. There were no watersports etc but everything went back to normal on the Tuesday if I remember correctly.

Hi ladies- here is the link to my pro pics from my wedding at the Grand Palladium Bavaro as well as my review - hope it helps! http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t38085 http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t38034 and if you have any questions feel free to ask!

Stunning!! You are a beautiful bride, you have a handsome hubby and Sevrine did a phenomonal (sp?) job!!! Seriously gorgeous! I am so happy to hear from another satisfied Photosouvenir bride! Your pics speak it all! Congrats newleywed!

And one more

Oooo fun thread! Skipping on the way to the ceremony: Here is one where I am thrilled to get to read my vows: DH and I laughing about who knows what: Here is one from our TTD, where DH was describing where he felt the water...:

Quote: Originally Posted by Jenamie OMG!!! y'all are amazing I was going to invite the fam to the TTD shoot but nope not happening now! I want some steam Haha! We did not invite our fam to the shoot, however my in-laws ended up being there with a videocamera! So now I have the entire thing filmed for our viewing pleasure!

Quote: Originally Posted by alkoch Everything looks great! Did you have instructions for the veil or did you just wing it? I love it and I am thinking of a veil like that so if I can DIY it should save some money! This is the link to the instructions and pics: http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t38073 Let me know if you have any questions!

Quote: Originally Posted by sperger Thank you for this review, it is so helpful! I'm having our wedding at GP PC, and I wanted to know if you had pics of this cake? Here is a pic of our cake taken by a family member: If you have something really specific in mind, I would suggest bringing a pic down with you, b/c they will probably try to re-create it for you as my experience was they were very accommodating. We really didn't care about the cake at all, so with no direction, this is what we got... On a positive note, it tasted delicious, although everyone was full from dinner and desert so no one really ate it!

Quote: Originally Posted by lisaloo79 OH I like this and need some motivation. I joined a gym at the beg. of March and was faithful for about 6 weeks going 3-4 times a week. I've been a slacker since then going about 1 time a week. So last night I said enough is enough and finally went back. WOOO! I did my 1 km (which takes me 15 mins) walk then about 45 mins of weight lifting. I had knee surgery 6 months ago, so I have to take it slow with the walking/leg weights! Have you tried the bike? It is fabulous for knee rehab b/c it is no impact. It is usually a bit uncomfortable at the beginning but as your stregth and range of movement improves, you will see huge benefits. Good luck getting back to the gym!