We are almost there. One day to go till the celebration. It was time to pack everything up and drive to the Ripplecove in Ayer’s Cliff.
There was still a few things to sort out like getting the flowers (yeah I know… it should have been done already), writing the names of guests on the cards, finalising the ceremony details, etc. There was no time to do so before we arrive at the Ripplecove. Go with the flow right?
We departed from my brother’s on time to collect the Irish in-laws in Montreal. Simply driving in and out of city was an adventure. To the grievance of the Montrealers, the city is going through massive roadworks rejunevation.
Apparently, the previous administration did not invest enough in rebuilding the roads and they are currently playing catch-up. This meant that getting out of the city was not as smooth as I would have expected. There has been so many changes in the layout of the roads (especially around the Champlain bridge) that I got a bit confused. I made a few mistakes and ended taking the wrong roads. The GPS at this time was no help at all.
Reminding myself about the motto ‘Go with the flow’ I trusted that there was a reason for the detour and you know what? It did. We forgot our travel adapters for our European plugs. We needed to get one for our clothes steamer. That little detour I took brought us right next to a Best Buy. Perfect opportunity to get the adapter. In no time – although delayed, I was on the road to the Auberge. Go with the flow!
We arrived in Ayer’s Cliff much later than expected. I had not time to sort out flowers that evening. I was hoping to stop in Magog but it was not meant to be. At least the drive in was nice and the Irish in-laws got to see the country side. I was pleased about that.
Upon our arrival, it was all go go go again. The hotel manager had finished her shift but waited for us to arrived to discuss the final details of the day. We genuinely appreciated her dedication in making this day a success. Since everything was organised from afar, she has been central in making our day perfect. She was understanding and flexible. She has been an absolute star.
She showed us the reception room, the terrace where the cocktails would be held, the ceremony location, etc. At that moment, I realised that we were going to be celebrating exactly like we have imagined 10 years ago. It was convivial, intimate and personal.
We met the Maître d’Hotel and started discussing the various details. We had a really good laugh because he thought I was English (like English from England – not english speaking from Canada). At one point in our conversation I switched to Québécois to his surprise. More than 10 years in an english speaking countries might have changed my accent slightly. He also fully realised that we organised everything for the celebration from abroad and that we had not set foot at the Ripplecove neither tried the menu and wine we chose. We controlled what we could control and the rest? Go with the flow!
That evening we planned for a dinner at Ayer’s Cliff Auberge with friends and family that were staying in the region. It was a stroll away from the Ripplecove. The evening was warm and beautiful. Although not very hungry (my stomach was in bits), I went all the way and decided to order the “Filet mignon poutine, old cheddar and half-glased porto sauce”. Oh my my my. For the amount I hate, it was delicious. The service was spot on. Courtesy of Molson Coors (thanks Bro!), the beer was sponsored. We ate, we laughed, we drank, we had a lot of fun.
Later in the evening, we were remembered that we had a curfew which I was kind of happy with. I still didn’t sleep much since we arrived in Québec. I was looking forward to a rest. We all left the restaurant nicely with the hope of a good night. However there was still a few things to iron out with my brother. I thought, it should only take 15-20 minutes. We joined my brother and sister-in-law in their room. Of course my brother came prepared and had a cooler full of beer and a LONG list of things to cover. LOL. How can we organised the perfect day without putting the dots to the i’s and bars to the t’s. It was 1am… the man was tired, I was tired but wired. I thought we can do this. We are pro at this!!
It is 2am, we are a bit drunk, perhaps laughing a lot and a bit loud – as we usually do. Suddenly, a knock at the door. It was the hotel night staff asking us to keep it down sound wise. I couldn’t believe it! Here we are, all grown ups and thinking we are behaving being told to keep it down. Go with the flow!
After a heated debate about how table cards and seatings were going to work, we sorted what needed to be sorted. We could finally go to bed. My brother says as a joke: 6.30am time for the rehearsal, as we didn’t get a chance to rehearse. We laughed and shrugged exhausted.
Now… did I sleep? No. I had no sleep at all. My mind was on overdrive. Believe it or not, I was still thinking about the table seatings. I am sure that for most couples organising the seating plan is one of the most challenging part. It is not an easy task. We only had 50 people to think about. Imagine 200+ guests!
6.30am, I hear a knock at the door. I am like: “No f**** way!”. That can be?! Was my brother really serious about rehearsing at 6.30am? I opened the door. It was the boy. A sigh of relief! The boy was sleeping in a separate room with his cousins. He woke up and couldn’t fall back to sleep so he decided to come to us. Gotta love kids. If I was hoping to nap, that was over now. Go with the flow!
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