It is in the city of Saint-Caprais-de-Bordeaux located in the Entre-deux-mers, on the right south bank of the Garonne that Andréa and Philippe wished to organize the secular ceremony of their bilingual Franco-Australian wedding. The newlyweds chose me to be their secular ceremonial officiate in the family estate park, Château la Gontrie.
Secular ceremonial officer | Bordeaux bilingual wedding
The bride, Andrea, wanted the speeches of the secular ceremony to be pronounced in the native language of her Australian mother: English.
Having lived in Australia as a child, Andréa has always practiced English, just like French, but she also wanted the texts to be read in French for her husband and her husband’s family.
In addition, the newlyweds have friends from foreign countries so it was logical and necessary for English to cover a part of the ceremony.
It was perfect for them because I am a secular ceremonial officiate for bilingual marriages! I speak English fluently so I had no problem managing the secular ceremony.
Among the 180 guests of Andréa and Philippe from France and abroad, many spoke only English! It was absolutely necessary for them to understand the texts and the course of events, so it was reassuring for the brides to trust me at this level.
The meeting with the bride and groom before organizing the secular ceremony
We met for the very first time in a coffee shop in Bordeaux so that they could introduce themselves and discuss their wedding project. We got along straight away!
Then we met again in their beautiful house to be able to create their beautiful moment of the ceremony. I was very well received by Andrea and Philippe and their two little girls. For several months we organized together their secular ceremony, with the same positive energy.
Despite the fact that Andrea and Philippe were very busy with work and often on business trips, they were able to take some time with me so that I could move forward with organizing their secular ceremony.
Château la Gontrie, future wedding reception venue
Andréa and Philippe celebrated their wedding in the family property Château la Gontrie in Saint-Caprais-de-Bordeaux.
The castle was born with its very first marriage and not just any marriage; it was its owners! It was a new experience for the newlyweds who found it interesting to launch a new activity in 2020: to become hosts of wedding receptions in their area!
The castle is already a place to stay so there were enough rooms to accommodate the wedding guests. As a matter of fact, it made perfect sense to organize a wedding in this area!
A beautiful story that began with the castle that hosted the wedding of Andrea and Philippe!
Being a ceremonial officiate for the wedding of Andrea and Philip was an honor for me as I loved discovering this mix of different countries and cultures.
The English language allows me to live this kind of exciting event with people from foreign countries and that’s really what I love in the profession of wedding planner and ceremonial officiate!
The various approaches in organizing their ceremony to create speeches and guest interventions were very informative and entertaining.
Mélissa
