Weddings in Italy, memories, and anniversaries from North to South

My wedding anniversary this year coincided with the invitation to our dear friends’ daughter’s wedding in Puglia. What better occasion to celebrate it in a big way and relive the magical moments of that day?

For our wedding, my husband and I had opted for a very intimate and warm ceremony, certainly not from a climate point of view, considering that we got married in the mountains, in Bormio, in the Alps of Lombardy. The menu was as typical as can be in Valtellina: sciatt and pizzoccheri delighted our guests, who were not as used to such traditional local flavours and tastes as we were.

In turn, I was enchanted by this typically opulent Apulian wedding, different from our ‘northern’ habits of people living at the opposite end of the Italian territory. To be honest, I had started out a little fearful at the thought of the pre-announced twelve hours, at least, to be dedicated to this occasion. The bride and groom’s choice of location, however, immediately put me at ease: a typical, elegant masseria, immersed in the nature of Monopoli, with a blue sky that couldn’t be bluer and white walls that couldn’t be whiter.

And then the main protagonist of these weddings is notoriously the food, something I’m very fond of!

This starts with what in the south of our country is the aperitif, but for those without a trained stomach it may already be a hearty meal! We are indeed presented with a riot of freshly made goodness. And then there is the corner dedicated to the live preparation of fresh mozzarella; to the one where the scent of the typical Bari focaccia is irresistible; to the station where the locally grown vegetables provide the illusion of eating low-fat, which is immediately dismissed by the table overflowing with typical local cold cuts. Not to mention the space reserved for orecchiette alle cime di rapa freshly prepared before my very eyes. How can you not fall in love with a wedding like this?

With all these delicacies and the setting of a warm early autumn in Puglia, the time we spent later for the dinner served at the table unexpectedly went by in a flash. Thanks to the music that enticed us to dance between courses and the abundance of excellent Apulian wines, we assisted the cutting of the cake and the final toast without almost noticing how fast time had gone by! 

We worked off the great binge the next day with a nice bike ride among the olive, pomegranate, and prickly pear trees… and the celebrations continued!