San Fran - the good, bad, and ugly.

…continued from yesterday’s post. The first week of actual planning proved to be quite daunting. It make clear that San Fran was nothing short of stupid. Said another way, choosing the most expensive city in the US does not equate to the benefits of having a “destination wedding”. As this stewed in my brain day after day, Friday finally rolled around and we were both exhausted from a long week of work. What followed was an amazing three hour conversation…..and a sight for sore eyes for any project manger…..

A highly recommended process to go through for any couple trying to decide what is important to them. We had a couple of cities we were toying with - - -

• San Fran (which basically boiled down to Monterrey)
• Cabo (since that is on the water and I have a time share there)
• LA (since it’s home for me and it still retains the ocean)

Everytime we tried listing pros and cons we quickly realized that different things were important to both of us. So, what REALLY cleared our heads was to list out our values in choosing a destination……yea, did I mention we were exhausted from a long week or work…yea….this started feeling like work all over again….but it was the right thing to do - - - peeling back the onion one layer at a time.

Our values:

• Beach / nature
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• That people would actually be able to attend
• We could get a person on the ground who would be a coordinator
• Cost
• Feasibility of getting an Indian caterer

We then ranked them by importance. Highest on my ranking was that a beach and nature was involved, highest on his ranking was that people would actually be able to attend.

Based on this, Cabo – as beautiful as it is – had to be eliminated. There is no way people we were going to force family in india get a visa to mexico!

Monterrey also was becoming a weak contender - - - high cost, no family - - - it’s not like this is a one ceremony church wedding….this is a four day event. We have no family in SF….where would the Sangeet be? How about the Mehndhi? What if we need last minute alterations – where would we even begin to go? This was not a good idea, and it was clear. Off the list.

We then had an epiphany. My dear friend, Poorvi’s mom is an Indian wedding planner and decorator and volunteered to do the wedding if we did it in the North Carolina area, where she lives. Saurab went to school at Duke – which is in Raleigh. I effectively work in Raleigh. Hmmmm……should we include the Outer Banks? Hilton Head? Wilmington?

There was some serious consideration, and from a checks and balance it delivered on all of our values….

BUT….this is where process can get in the way of matters of the heart.

I am a West Coast gal….on all levels. The thought of a California girl getting married in North Carolina just made my stomach turn.

So, that left one option ….. back to So Cal.

Called my mom and asked if she would mind hosting the wedding festivities in the area. She was ELATED.

Three hours later – location box checked!

We then put people to work – my parents, his cousin Vaishali, my cousin Roma, and my best friend Amber. We gave them a daunting task - - - find any and all interesting venues from Santa Barbara to San Diego that encompass these three words...

“Ocean – Nature – Art”