Cyprus and Egypt in May 2002

Our friend George Christodoulou is from the island of Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean. Our friend Heidi Halverson is from Wisconsin. When they announced in 2001 that they were getting married, it was no surprise when they decided to have the ceremony in Cyprus. Where is Cyprus? It is in the eastern Mediterranean between Turkey and Lebanon. Here is a map.

We managed to find a way to get all the way from Portland to Larnaca, Cyprus by way of Washington, DC and Vienna using Pat's frequent flyer miles on United. Because the wedding took place during the school year and kids were not invited to the ceremony, we traveled without the kids for the first time ever. This was a scary and exciting proposition! So after making the actual travel arrangements, our next order of business was to figure out how to make sure the kids were cared for.

We ended up having our babysitter Molly live at the house for much of the time. In addition, all of our neighbors chipped in to make sure the kids make it to and from school, and they assisted Molly whenever necessary. We found out what a great bunch of friends and neighbors we really have! Here is a document which shows how the kids were "covered" while we were gone.

Cutting it mighty close...

From our front door in Portland to the Wedding Chapel required about 23 hours of travel, and after a harrowing cross-island cab ride from the airport (we made the mistake of telling our Cypriot driver we were in a hurry) we arrived while the wedding was in progress. We changed into formal wear, and got to the chapel in time to cheer the newlyweds as they completed the ceremony.

Here is a picture of Heidi on "The Big Day".

Here a shot of Todd Wright (who was in the wedding party) and Pat at the reception.

The food at the reception was really something... this is just a sample of the fifty or so dishes that were served.

As you can see, the location was fantastic. The Anassa Hotel is without question the most exclusive resort we have ever seen. It is straight out of "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous". While Jo-Dee and Pat had to find more modest accommodations, Todd splurged and got a room at the Anassa... this is the view from his bedroom looking onto his patio...