Pete & Louise
Our one concern was that Lou doesn’t like a lot of fuss, is quite shy, and hates being the centre of attention, so the thought of a big wedding wasn’t for us, and we asked Karen if ours could be just the two of us, using members of the Lindos Weddings team as witnesses, and if she could keep the whole thing quiet as we didn’t want anyone to know about it until we returned home, including our families. We were delighted when she told us that this wasn’t a problem at all. Our secret wedding planning began 🙂
The planning certainly seemed daunting at first - all the talk of CONI meetings, timescales, and deadlines - but the information provided by Karen was fantastic; there was lots to read, but it was all very clear, and we worked out our “to do” list and when we had to do things, and everything went to plan. The hardest part was finding a suit for me that we both liked!
As our wedding day was just the two of us, we did things in a bit of an unconventional way - we spent the day together by the pool, until around 3PM when we headed off to get ready. Lou had booked Líndos Weddings hairdressers to do her hair and make-up and had had a trial a few days before to make sure that everything was OK. As she doesn’t really wear make-up she wanted a fresh, natural look, and they really took care of this. Meanwhile I got ready in a room the hotel let me have for the afternoon, then headed off to the taxi which took me to St Paul’s.
We’d booked the last wedding of the day, so there was nobody following us down, the bay was getting quieter, and the temperature was becoming a little cooler. A few minutes after I arrived I heard a taxi heading down to the bay, horn blaring, and I saw Lou step out then start to walk down the hill to the chapel, my first glimpse of her and the dress she’d kept hidden from me - a short tea dress, chosen specifically to be cool as we knew what Lindos was like. In her hand she held a rustic bouquet of white roses (in honour of her dad, a Yorkshireman), and lavender, with gypsophila. The mayor conducted the ceremony, two of the ladies from Lindos Weddings were our witnesses, and after a few minutes we were married. The photographer took lots of pictures of us around the chapel and the bay, and then we walked together into the village, both laughing excitedly, saying we couldn’t believe we’d done it and nobody knew. There’s a photo of us walking along the road, both laughing, and it is Lou’s favourite picture of us.
As we walked through the village it was about 8PM, and people were out in the bars and restaurants. People clapped and cheered us as we walked, emerging from doorways to celebrate our tiny wedding, and when we reached Odyssia, our reception venue and our favourite restaurant in the village, the staff greeted us with applause, hugs and kisses. It would have been a bit odd having an area cordoned off for the two of us, or booking a DJ, so we just asked for our favourite table, which Lindos Weddings had decorated with chair covers, a lantern, and some flowers. It was perfect.
When we returned home we were nervous about what our families and friends would say when we revealed our secret. I’ll never forget their faces when they asked how our holiday had been, and we replied “good thanks - we got married!” then showed our wedding rings, and the tears flowed when they saw the stunning album of photos. Everyone was overjoyed, and said we’d done it in the best possible way, and that they were amazed we’d managed to keep it a secret without spilling the beans.
Our advice to anyone thinking of getting married in Lindos is do it! If you can, go to Lindos first to see the place, as lots of people are surprised by how hot and hilly it is, so try to get over there and check the venues out. We’d unreservedly recommend using Lindos Weddings as your planner, even if you’re looking for a tiny wedding like ours, as they make the process so easy and they’re super helpful every step of the way.
