The Royal Wedding, Pt. 2

Well, it was quite the to do over in Stockholm by the looks of it. As previously mentioned, a who's who of global royals were in attendance, including Prince Edward, Prince Albert of Monaco and the pride of Australia, Princess Mary of Denmark.

A friend living in Stockholm had told me the week before that there had been some sort of controversy over the initial wedding procession. Apparently, it is traditional in the Swedish national church (which is Lutheran) for the couple to walk down the aisle together. Princess Victoria, having spent time in the States (including Yale...boo!) desired what became known as an "American style" wedding which meant that her father the current king would walk her down the aisle. Victoria's persistence had raised something of a stink amongst the Swedish clergy and consequently in the national press. There were apparently members of the clergy who suggested that no one should marry them. Clearly that wasn't going to happen. In then end, it appeared that Victoria had learned her first lesson in marital compromise. Her father walked her halfway down the aisle where the groom was waiting. Together, they then processed up to the alter. And all over Sweden was heard a sigh of relief...

The wedding itself was pretty short. I'm pretty sure the service lasted an hour, max. The ceremony and the music was tasteful right up until the very end, when Princess Victoria's penchant for American culture reared its ugly American head once again. The final performance of the ceremony was a pseudo-pop duet featuring two Swedish pop vocalists singing in English. Meanwhile, the newlyweds awkwardly held hands and smiled for approximately 4 minutes before walking out of the church to meet the horse-drawn carriage that then transported them all over Stockholm.

My Mother enjoyed every last minute and we have photographic evidence of the wedding from the TV we watched in the hotel we weren't staying in. All in all, though, it was an enjoyable experience. It was very cool to watch the whole thing play out in an area that we had gotten to know quite well during our stay in Stockholm. Our hostel could be easily spotted on most of the outdoor panoramic shots, which we got a kick out of. It'll be a lasting memory from the trip for sure.