The Wedding

Made by Beqster

The wedding took twelve months of planning. Because Belle and Beqster wanted a big wedding with all the trimmings, but only had an average budget, they went to a wedding show in Birmingham's NEC and bought a wedding design book.

After going through the book chapter by chapter, to ensure that they didn't overlook any part of the wedding, they divided it into sections and decided who would be responsible for each part. Then they delegated as many projects as possible to family and friends.

Beqster had to drop the idea of arriving in a helicopter, the fireworks display got axed (because of the cost of a licence) and the honeymoon to budget was halved to pay for magnificent photographers and a very special wedding album, which was published in the manner of a book. If you don’t want to look through all 1500 photographs which were taken on the big day, just look through the “Wedding Album” which is the 60 images chosen for the book.

At the conclusion of his second contract aboard the world's most famous ocean liner, the Queen Mary 2, Beqster planned to enjoy his "retirement" by joining Belle on the Island Princess, for a cruise around Hawaii.

But on his third day aboard, the cruise line asked Beqster if he would assume the role of Cruise Director. This meant spending a month with Belle and touring the beautiful Hawaiian islands, whilst getting paid... how could he resist?

A Hawaiian proposal had not been planned. But with plenty of hype regarding the world premier of a brand new Princess show, Beqster knew that Belle, her colleagues and an already excited audience were primed for an emotional event.

Buying flowers for the Cast meant Beqster needed something more impressive for the love of his life... and what better than a diamond ring? Beqster had already asked Big Al, Belle's father, for her hand in marriage, and with his approval in the bag, it was all engines go!

But would she say "Yes" in front of 900 passengers, and her closest friends?

Belle and Beqster new that they wanted to go somewhere exotic and hot, that they had never visited before. Tahiti and the South Pacific were top of the list, but they couldn’t justify £2,500 for photography and an incredible honeymoon. And some deliberation, they decided that the islands were gonna be around for a long time, but the photo op’ was a one off. So the honeymoon budget got axed, reducing travel costs dramatically. Belle came up with the idea of Sardinia, Italy...

It is not a mainstream Mediterranean destination but a sophisticated Italian island, west of mainland Italy and south of Corsica. With over 1000 miles of unspoilt coastline, it is renowned for beautiful beaches, translucent azure blue sea and fascinating rock formations. Being the second largest Mediterranean island, it has an interesting history, wild mountainous interior, vibrant towns and colourful local traditions. The locals are warm and friendly, enjoying year-round sunshine.

Reached within 2 hours from the UK, the flights were more than reasonable. Belle and Beqster decided upon Alghero in the north west which boasted a beautiful and unspoilt scenery, with plenty of translucent blue seas, white sandy beaches and vibrant, yet un-commercialised towns offering culture, history and a wealth of gastronomic delights. They relaxed by the pool, sipped cocktails, watched the sun set, enjoyed sumptuous Sardinian dinners, and walked hand in hand on deserted beaches in the balmy evening air. The Sardinian cuisine offered a rich repertoire of dishes, heavily influenced by the country’s various neighbours including Corsica and Italy and was accompanied by impressive local wines.