After breakfast at the hotel on the morning of the wedding, we decided to explore Baker City a little more thoroughly. We both had expected the place to be a pit, but were pleasantly surprised that it was a charming little town.
When we got downtown though, it was like walking on to the set of "The Twilight Zone". The streets were more or less deserted. The streets were all blocked off for a series of bicycle races scheduled throughout the day. This made exploring more convenient, in a way. There was no traffic to deal with.
Here is the start of the little kids bicycle race:
I really dug this vintage theater, the Eltrym (which is Myrtle backwards, an homage to Myrtle Buckmiller, the woman who had it built but never lived to see it open in 1940).
Speaking of theaters, Erich got us pulled into a pie sale fundraiser for another theater, The Orpheum. A group of citizens want to restore it to its former glory. Opened in 1889 as a vaudeville theater and then a movie house, it had a fire in 1936. It re-opened in 1940, but closed in the 50s, becoming a hardware store, music store and finally a clothing store. It's an ambitious project, but there is literally NOTHING LEFT of the former theater. Good luck...
This is the Geiser Grand Hotel. Erich and I both wished we had stayed there instead of the Best Western by the freeway. This place looked beautiful.
Part of our excursion out into Baker City was to buy some necessities for the wedding. The wedding was going to be outside...and there was going to be no shade available. Oh God... It was hot, like in the upper 80s. We needed hats. Hmm. The outside ceremony was just one of the surprises we had in store for us. We both knew the groom, Lewis, but we had never met the bride, Amanda. But we had heard incredible things about her. However, we were informed that her family and many of the guests were Mormon and Trump supporters, so we were forbidden to discuss politics. Okay... It was only the night before the wedding that we found out the harshest truth of all. After spending 15 1/2 hours driving to Baker City (from Fresno), we would be going to a wedding with (GASP!) NO ALCOHOL! Oh my STARS! What kind of barbarians were these people? Oh, one last thing. The wedding was another 45 minutes away, up a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. Huh? Jeepers. What had we gotten ourselves in for?
We ventured into Bi-Mart, an amazingly bizarre store (to me) that I've only ever seen in Oregon. Don't get me wrong. I love the store, but for the wrong reasons. To me, it is like a low-budget no frills K-Mart, if you can imagine that.
We DID find hats there, but then wondered if we should try to fit in with this Trump-y Mormon wedding out in the boonies and considered (but ultimately passed on) getting matching outfits of this:
We also made an emergency stop to buy booze! Ricki requested some Chardonnay, which we snagged at Safeway. We found stuff for gin and tonics at a liquor store across the street--thank god!
So, off we went, down the freeway and then over hill and over dale. We actually drove across part of the Oregon Trail (no joke!) and then up this dirt road (really!). Finally we came to the entrance to Amanda's parents' ranch, where the wedding was to be.
Parking was informal. But notice the dust/dirt? There really was a long dirt road before the dirt driveway.
The bride's family's house is on the hill.
Their barn and horse area were between the cars and where the reception would be.
I don't know if you can see this or not, but just beyond the boundaries of their property there was nothing but scrub brush. Where were we?
We relocated up the hill for the ceremony.
Our little bar in the back o' the car...
Cell phones were not allowed during the ceremony--so I have no actual shots of the wedding itself.
Despite the unrelenting sun and the heat on top of the hill, once I saw the backdrop of snow-covered mountains, I totally understood why the bride chose this spot to get married.
Steve (Groom's father) and his sister, Ricki.
The guy in the suspenders and bow tie was the best man and brother of the groom, Issac. All of the groomsmen were outfitted in matching outfits.
Here is Beth, mother of the groom.
The wedding was late getting started, so i had a chance to run back to the car and refresh Erich, my and Laura's gin and tonics. Ha!
Here is Beth with her sister.
Here is Beth with the mother of the bride.
Here is Amanda, minutes after becoming Louis' wife. I only got to meet Amanda briefly, but she already had my respect. She really did seem like all that I had heard about. I also wondered what the Trump-y Mormon contingent thought about the wedding. Amanda's bridesmaids were all garbed in these long flowy gowns in various shades of lavender and red...except for two of them. One lady wore slacks, a vest and a tie. She was a lesbian. Another bridesmaid, dressed in the same fashion, was a gay guy. To top it off, Amanda married Louis, who is Jewish. I loved it all. GOOD for her having the friends that were important to her in her wedding--regardless of gender identification -- and marrying the man she loved. There was a traditional Jewish huppah (the small structure they were married in front of) and, after they were announced as man and wife, Louis stepped on a glass. Mazel tov!
Here is Louis post-becoming Amanda's spouse.
Beth holds the scarf that held the glass Louis stomped on after the ceremony. Some of the bridesmaids can be seen on the right of her.
Here are some of the groomsmen.
Ricki looked lost, as if she was looking for a date that was never going to arrive...
Back to the bar... Ricki needs her chardonnay and I could use another gin and tonic.
Some of the wedding party/guests chose to camp on the property and were corralled next to the porta-potty.
The reception:
Gift table:
Beth created these little "thank you" gifts for the guests. They were little cacti.
The dance floor.
Bridal table:
Stephen (Steve):
Beth's sister and mother.
These identically dressed boys were the ring bearers:
Steve and Ricki:
Announcing Louis and Amanda Kerner:
Issac and Aunt Ricki:
The cake and accompanying cupcakes. The cake topper is a pair of penguins, as penguins mate for life:
The buffet line:
The groom, Louis, with his mom, Beth:
Louis, Beth and Amanda:
The Kerner Family, Beth, Issac, Louis and Stephen:
And in sneaks that relative they try not to mention, Ricki:
Ricki and Laura:
Steve and Issac:
Best man Issac, makes his speech to the bride and groom:
Now it is Steve's turn for a speech:
The couple's first dance as man and wife:
And here is Louis dancing with his mom:
Soon everyone was dancing, but Ricki was still apparently looking for her mystery date....the one who never showed up. (Just teasing.)
The wedding turned out to be very nice after all (despite the sun/heat). Despite all of the warnings we had received beforehand, the wedding turned out to be nothing like I had envisioned (and dreaded). There were no problems with anyone and it was a very joyous occasion. I am very happy for Louis and Amanda and wish them the very best.
When we got downtown though, it was like walking on to the set of "The Twilight Zone". The streets were more or less deserted. The streets were all blocked off for a series of bicycle races scheduled throughout the day. This made exploring more convenient, in a way. There was no traffic to deal with.
Here is the start of the little kids bicycle race:
I really dug this vintage theater, the Eltrym (which is Myrtle backwards, an homage to Myrtle Buckmiller, the woman who had it built but never lived to see it open in 1940).
Speaking of theaters, Erich got us pulled into a pie sale fundraiser for another theater, The Orpheum. A group of citizens want to restore it to its former glory. Opened in 1889 as a vaudeville theater and then a movie house, it had a fire in 1936. It re-opened in 1940, but closed in the 50s, becoming a hardware store, music store and finally a clothing store. It's an ambitious project, but there is literally NOTHING LEFT of the former theater. Good luck...
This is the Geiser Grand Hotel. Erich and I both wished we had stayed there instead of the Best Western by the freeway. This place looked beautiful.
Part of our excursion out into Baker City was to buy some necessities for the wedding. The wedding was going to be outside...and there was going to be no shade available. Oh God... It was hot, like in the upper 80s. We needed hats. Hmm. The outside ceremony was just one of the surprises we had in store for us. We both knew the groom, Lewis, but we had never met the bride, Amanda. But we had heard incredible things about her. However, we were informed that her family and many of the guests were Mormon and Trump supporters, so we were forbidden to discuss politics. Okay... It was only the night before the wedding that we found out the harshest truth of all. After spending 15 1/2 hours driving to Baker City (from Fresno), we would be going to a wedding with (GASP!) NO ALCOHOL! Oh my STARS! What kind of barbarians were these people? Oh, one last thing. The wedding was another 45 minutes away, up a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. Huh? Jeepers. What had we gotten ourselves in for?
We ventured into Bi-Mart, an amazingly bizarre store (to me) that I've only ever seen in Oregon. Don't get me wrong. I love the store, but for the wrong reasons. To me, it is like a low-budget no frills K-Mart, if you can imagine that.
We DID find hats there, but then wondered if we should try to fit in with this Trump-y Mormon wedding out in the boonies and considered (but ultimately passed on) getting matching outfits of this:
We also made an emergency stop to buy booze! Ricki requested some Chardonnay, which we snagged at Safeway. We found stuff for gin and tonics at a liquor store across the street--thank god!
So, off we went, down the freeway and then over hill and over dale. We actually drove across part of the Oregon Trail (no joke!) and then up this dirt road (really!). Finally we came to the entrance to Amanda's parents' ranch, where the wedding was to be.
Parking was informal. But notice the dust/dirt? There really was a long dirt road before the dirt driveway.
The bride's family's house is on the hill.
Their barn and horse area were between the cars and where the reception would be.
I don't know if you can see this or not, but just beyond the boundaries of their property there was nothing but scrub brush. Where were we?
We relocated up the hill for the ceremony.
Our little bar in the back o' the car...
Cell phones were not allowed during the ceremony--so I have no actual shots of the wedding itself.
Despite the unrelenting sun and the heat on top of the hill, once I saw the backdrop of snow-covered mountains, I totally understood why the bride chose this spot to get married.
Steve (Groom's father) and his sister, Ricki.
The guy in the suspenders and bow tie was the best man and brother of the groom, Issac. All of the groomsmen were outfitted in matching outfits.
Here is Beth, mother of the groom.
Here is Beth with her sister.
Here is Beth with the mother of the bride.
Here is Louis post-becoming Amanda's spouse.
Here are some of the groomsmen.
Ricki looked lost, as if she was looking for a date that was never going to arrive...
Back to the bar... Ricki needs her chardonnay and I could use another gin and tonic.
Some of the wedding party/guests chose to camp on the property and were corralled next to the porta-potty.
The reception:
Gift table:
Beth created these little "thank you" gifts for the guests. They were little cacti.
The dance floor.
Bridal table:
Stephen (Steve):
Beth's sister and mother.
These identically dressed boys were the ring bearers:
Steve and Ricki:
Issac and Aunt Ricki:
The cake and accompanying cupcakes. The cake topper is a pair of penguins, as penguins mate for life:
The buffet line:
The groom, Louis, with his mom, Beth:
Louis, Beth and Amanda:
The Kerner Family, Beth, Issac, Louis and Stephen:
And in sneaks that relative they try not to mention, Ricki:
Ricki and Laura:
Steve and Issac:
Best man Issac, makes his speech to the bride and groom:
Now it is Steve's turn for a speech:
The couple's first dance as man and wife:
And here is Louis dancing with his mom:
Soon everyone was dancing, but Ricki was still apparently looking for her mystery date....the one who never showed up. (Just teasing.)
The wedding turned out to be very nice after all (despite the sun/heat). Despite all of the warnings we had received beforehand, the wedding turned out to be nothing like I had envisioned (and dreaded). There were no problems with anyone and it was a very joyous occasion. I am very happy for Louis and Amanda and wish them the very best.
And they lived happily ever after...
That's it for this edition. Stay tuned for Part 4 which includes the return to Bend, a visit to a lava cave and dinner with a charming older lady with an amazing and unexpected garden.
CHEERS!
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