Saturday was the wedding day, and on Sunday, they held a farewell brunch at the Four Seasons, one of three hotels in the same neighborhood where they’d blocked off rooms for guests. The goal, says Priscila, was to show off the diversity of her beloved city through its most famous spots and neighborhoods. “I didn’t care about flower arrangements. I cared about showing people Bogotá and making the biggest splash possible,” she says.
Jillian Mitchell
Jillian Mitchell
Make the event your own
The flower arrangements by Flowerland were more Lio’s domain. “I wanted something that was extremely verdant. Because we were going to be inside all day, I wanted to bring the outside in,” she explains. “I think the typical wedding florals are, I don’t know how else to put this but: fluffy? I wanted things that felt eclectic, and I love color, but not kitschy color.” Lio also wanted to juxtapose the lived-in, antique-y texture of the restaurant, in which stucco was breaking away in spots to reveal tile underneath, with fresh, lush floral arrangements.
Another modern touch, which Lio’s dad was against, were a half dozen disco balls hung from the ceiling. “Disco balls at a wedding may be a little bit of a cliche, but guess what? They make everyone look amazing on the dance floor,” she laughs.
The ceremony was made entirely unique by their choice of officiant. “We picked a very handsome, 6’3 German-Italian bisexual theater director—the same person who introduced us in college, Ben. He is one of our best friends,” says Lio. “He’s a writer himself, too, so the ceremony he put together was so lovely.” He did such a great job that a pair of Lio’s parents’ friends even asked if they could hire him for their daughter’s wedding.
Jillian Mitchell
Jillian Mitchell
Celebrate the local flavors (and music)
As they held their wedding in a restaurant, working out the food was easy. “The food in Colombia is so delicious. Specifically, the red meat is so fresh, and the produce is like nothing else you’ve ever had in your life,” says Lio. “We wanted to give people really hearty, delicious food.” Among the passed hors d’oeuvres were mini empanadas and chicharrón, while dinner offered giant pieces of salmon and full ribeye steaks. For dessert, there was a chocolate cake from a local, trans-owned bakery, as well as a croquembouche, in a nod to Priscila’s partially French heritage.
The music by DJ Winston Howard featured reggaeton—“I’m a reggaeton friend,” Priscila says—but also the hits of the couple’s past. “I wanted the songs that we danced to from middle school to college, just bops,” says Lio. “So it was a combination of Daddy Yankee, the Backstreet Boys, and Kendrick Lamar.”
Jillian Mitchell
Party like Colombianos
There was one more dish, served on the dance floor, to sate their guests later into the evening. “We had passed cups of soup to keep people dancing and revive them at the end of the night,” Lio says of the “very, very, very traditional” Colombian soup (and beloved hangover cure) called caldo de Costilla. When she shared the plan with American friends before the wedding, they thought it would be too weird. “But everyone loved it. They were so happy to have something warm and delicious and nourishing to offset all that dancing.”
The sustenance was needed, as dancing carried on until 3:00 am. There was no need for an after-party, as the venue expected the wedding itself to go on that long, unlike the typical end point for American weddings.
It’s been less than a year since Priscila and Lio’s wedding, but the highlights keep coming. “We’ve had multiple guests, since our wedding, book trips and go to Colombia in the last year: ‘We loved it so much we had to go back,’” Lio says. “We were like, Ahh, we’ve succeeded!’”
