Our Latest Wedding News
Receptions - Posted: 10 May, 2008
Well the wedding is over and was perfect in every way. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the receptions in Dundas and South Surrey! We'll have albums of photos for the receptions but for now I've posted a few on this site under The Wedding.
Thanks everyone!
ONE WEEK! - Posted: 17 Apr, 2008
We are down to the One week countdown! Hopefully by now everyone has received their tickets, and they are all set to go. We are sending a little something out to each of you, most have it already and others will be receiving it anyday now. Hope you enjoy it!
We just want to wish everyone a safe and happy flight, and we look forward to seeing all of you in a weeks time. If anyone needs anything or has any remaining questions, you know how to reach us.
The temp in Punta Cana today was 29 degrees - feels like 41. Pack LOTS of sunscreen!
See everyone soon! Brad and Devon
Receptions After the Fact - Posted: 04 Mar, 2008
We just wanted to give everyone a heads up that there will be two receptions after we return from the Dominican, for people that could not attend the wedding, and for those of us who did attend the trip to see pictures, reminisce, and just another excuse to party!
The first reception will be in the South Surrey area of British Columbia, at the Semiahmoo Fish and Game Club on May 31st.
The second will be held in the Dundas/Hamilton area of Ontario on June 28th.
More details to come as the dates get closer, but we wanted to give everyone the heads up on the dates in case they were wanting to attend!
Spanish Phrases - Posted: 28 Feb, 2008
Hello! 8 weeks to go!
For anyone who is interested in learning a few key phrases or words in Spanish, I have posted under Essential Info, under the title Espanol, a document that outlines english to spanish translations and proper pronunciations for commonly used phrases and words.
See everyone soon!
Guests - Posted: 21 Feb, 2008
Now that everyone is booked and paid - I wanted to post a list of who's who in case anyone was wondering who all was going and what connection they had to the Bride and Groom.
Rudy and Monika Otter - parents of the Groom
Mike and Kathie Flaherty - parents of the Bride
Mike and Brenda Otter - Brother and sister in law of the Groom
Kassandra and Robert Otter - niece and nephew of the Groom
Ron Otter - Brother of the Groom
Trevor and Heather Flaherty - brother and sister in law of the Bride
Shaylin and Matthew Flaherty - niece and nephew of the Bride
Mike and Shannon Rothwell - Brother in law and sister (also maid of honour) of the bride
Michael, Ryan and Kaitlyn Rothwell - Nephews and niece of the Bride
Frank and Janet Davis - Uncle and Aunt of the Bride
Ed and Janis Butler - Uncle and Aunt of the Bride
Mark, Siobhan and Kacy Otter - Cousins of the Groom
Shawn, Alison, Kayleigh and Jaden Gregerson - Cousins of the Groom
Dale Otter - Cousin of the Groom
Tracy and Kory Cudmore - Cousins of the Groom
Mike Colbon - Best Man/friend of the Groom
Kenny Popoff - Friend of the Groom
Kathy and Peter Jones - cousins of the Groom
Darryl Galandie and Leslie Stevenson - Friends of the Bride and Groom
Jen Cote and Jim Lapcevich - Friends of the Bride
Jennifer Ball and Deanna Oliphant - Friends of the Bride
Jacquie Conlon and Jennifer Fynbo - Friends of the Bride
Jackie and Dave McKenna - extended family of the Bride
Jack and Marnie Rothwell - extended family of the Bride
Dave, Kathy, Cameron and Kate McPhee - extended family of the Bride
So including Brad and Myself – we have 54 people total going on the trip.
11 weeks!! - Posted: 05 Feb, 2008
Just over 11 weeks to go, and we'll be on our way to the Dominican! Time is flying by very quickly, so hopefully everyone has gotten their passports already!
Final payment for the trip will be due in 2 weeks. Please remember to contact Megan in advance and give her your payment. Please also remember there are an awful lot of us trying to pay all at one time, so if you dont get through right away, keep trying.
Also, Megan doesn't work fridays so if you try her on a friday you likely will not reach her.
There is travel insurance available through our travel agent, should you choose to purchase it. This includes medical insurnace, luggage insurance and the whole insurance package. Megan can give you more info on that should you be interested. Brad and I usually just purcahse medical insurance through BCAA, even if you aren't a member, it's pretty cheap for 1 or two weeks. We are both covered through work but just get some extra just in case.
We're really looking forward to seeing everyone and getting to spend time with everyone. It's going to be a great time and it truly is a beautiful place.
Can't wait!!!
Excursions - Posted: 04 Jan, 2008
Hello everyone! In case anyone is interested in any of the excursions offered in the Dominican I’ve listed most of them with the most up to date pricing below. First price is adults, second children.
PUNTA CANA Excursions* Prices (in US dollars )** Adults/Children
Bavaro Runners: Jeep Safari discovering the Dominican countryside, through typical villages, mountains and sugarcane fields. Stop in a ranch for lunch, horseback riding and for a swim. 80 40
Santo Domingo: A visit of the capital of Dominican Republic and the oldest city of Americas with its main monuments. 65 32.50
Snorkelling at Marinarium: Unique marine park where you can swim with sharks and stingrays in an ecological protected zone. (half day) 78 39
Saona Island: Cruise either by catamaran or speedboat to Saona island where you’ll enjoy a BBQ on the beach and stop for a last swim in a natural pool. 89 44.50
Saona VIP Catamaran: Cruise either by catamaran or speedboat to Saona island stopping on a sand bank in a middle of the sea near Catalinita. Also swim in a natural pool. 94 47
Catalina – Cumayasa – Altos de Chavon: Catamaran cruise to Catalina island (snorkelling), lunch at Cumayasa Ranch (horseback riding) and visit Altos de Chavon, a replica of a medieval Italian village that offers a great view of the Chavon river. 95 47.50
Altos de Chavon / Cueva de las maravillas: Discovering Altos de Chavon, the prominent artist’s village built in an amazing panaroma and the cave “Cueva de las maravillas”, the first Antillean natural museum of rupestral art. 64 32
Higuey shopping: A tour of Higuey, capital of the province with its famous Basilica, local market and plenty souvenirs to buy. 39 19.50
Kontiki boat tour: A half-day boat tour taking you snorkelling. Entertainment on the program . 69 34.50
Manati Park: Animal park. Parrot and dolphin show. 30 15
Dolphin island: A swim with dolphin in a close area in the ocean. 95 95
Macao Crazy Wheels ATV: Half day ATV tour through towns, on beach, through jungle. we did this one and it was a lot of fun! Not sure about child price but Adult was 80 if you single ride and 65 each if you share one ATV.
There are other excursions as well but I don’t have the info on them at this time.
There are also a few golf courses in the area, the green fees are mucho expensive-o but if you are a golfer, then the courses are beautiful and there will be plenty of folks on this trip to golf with!
The hotel also offers free use (one hour per day) of Kayaks, Paddleboats, and Hobie-Cats. There is also a beach volleyball court and plenty of organized activities.
Let us know if you have any questions!
How the Day Will Go - Posted: 04 Jan, 2008
I’ve had some questions about the actual wedding day, and what will happen that day, etc. so I thought I’d post here a rough schedule for the wedding day itself.
The day of the wedding (Monday, April 28th) we will be getting married directly on the beach at 12 noon. We won’t find out the actual location of the ceremony until we get there, so there will be a note in everyone’s rooms before the wedding letting you know exactly where on the beach to go.
Plan to get to the spot about 1145am and bring drinks! The judge runs on “Dominican Time” and is often late. We don’t want people sitting around under the hot sun with nothing to drink for that time in the event he/she is late.
The ceremony itself is very short. It will likely be wrapped up in under 15 minutes. After this we will be taking pictures on the beach. We ask that everyone stick around long enough to get a group shot of everyone, then you may head off to have the afternoon to yourselves to do whatever you please.
We will meet up again at 630pm on the terrace of the Garden Grill Steakhouse. This is where the reception will be held. We will have dinner and cake followed by short speeches and we will have a sound system hooked up to dance the evening away. (if anyone has any song requests please email them to bradanddevon@hotmail.com as we will be providing all the music for the whole evening) There will be waiters to bring drinks for the entire evening. We have the terrace of the restaurant until about 1130pm, at which time those who are still up for more partying can head over to the Disco.
I’ve also gotten questions on what people are expected to wear. It will be casual, and relaxed, and you want to be comfortable! The ceremony itself takes place at the hottest time of day under the brutal Dominican sun.. Comfy sundresses, etc. for the women, nice shorts and a golf shirt or Hawaiian shirt for the men. Whatever you can sit comfortably in for the ceremony. For the dinner however men are required to wear long pants in the a la carte restaurants. It is not always enforced but as a precaution men may want to plan to wear pants for the dinner.
Hopefully that answers everyone’s questions…but of course let us know if you have any others.
Flight times and airport hotels - Posted: 29 Oct, 2007
So the flight times for Toronto have been posted, and the outbound flight from Vancouver has been posted - though the return has not. I have listed them below. They are subject to change but they are what the providers have listed as of right now.
Toronto: Depart Toronto April 24th at 405pm Arrive Punta Cana at 825pm
Depart Punta Cana May 1st at 920pm Arrive Toronto at 155am
Same flight time for those who are going for 2 weeks. Not the best flight times, but at least your flight is only 4.5 hours long.
Which brings me to Vancouver. So far the flight is direct on the way down. We still don't know the way back.
Depart Vancouver at 730am PST Arrive Punta Cana at 540pm EST
So there is a 3 hour time difference, and it's a 7 hour flight. Yes, that's long! It just means we'll be very, very drunk by the time we get to Punta Cana. We are going to the very eastern tip of the Dominican so it makes for a long flight. But it will be well worth it. As soon as I know the return flight info, I will post.
Due to the fact that the Vancouver flight leaves early, and you need to be at the airport 2 hours prior to leaving, (which would be 530am) some people had mentioned getting a hotel room at the airport. Delta Vancouver Airport hotel, has a rate of $135 which includes one night of lodging and parking for 14 days. They have a 24 hour free shuttle to and from the airport.
Parking at Vancouver airport is expensive so this isn't a bad idea for those who have to drive to the airport. There are other hotels that allow 7 days parking for those only going for one week. Just be careful that their shuttle is 24 hours. We'll need to be leaving the hotel around 520am and some shuttles don't start until 6am or 7am.
As always let us know if you have any questions and I'll post here as soon as I get more information.
Music - Posted: 23 Oct, 2007
Hi everyone
The day of our wedding in the Dominican, we will be having a reception on the outside (covered) terrace of the Garden Grill steakhouse at around 630pm. We have that area until 11-1130pm, so after dinner we plan to do some dancing. Instead of hiring a DJ in the Dominican, we are going to use our IPOD and they have a sound system there that is compatible. This is what most brides there have been doing. This way we can choose each and every song that we hear throughout dinner, then onwards throughout the dancing part of the night.
Because we want everyone to dance and have a good time, I thought I would check with everyone to see if they had songs they would like to hear throughout the evening. Even though the wedding is still 6 months away (or only 6 months away) it will take us awhile to collect all the music or download it and get the playlists put together for the dinner music, and all other play lists.
Please email us at bradanddevon@hotmail.com with any song requests, fast or slow, in any genre and I will add them to the list. Please send as many songs as you’d like, requests that will get you up dancing, or something you want to hear. Since we have such a wide range of ages going to the wedding, we want to be sure everyone is covered off with some music they like. For those of you bringing children, please consult them as well as there may be songs they would like to hear.
If you only know the title, and not the artist, no big deal I can probably figure out who sings it.
Thanks everyone! 6 months from tomorrow until we leave!
