About Us:
Colin is the oldest of four, one sister (the youngest) and
two brothers. He has spent time
working in accounting and information technology, and has served with the U.S.
Army Special Forces (Airborne). He currently works for a small computer
consulting firm. Colin enjoys bicycling, martial arts, reading,
running, computers, and spending time with Patty.
Patty is the middle one of three sisters.
She has a BS in business from the University of Illinois in Champaign and an
MBA from the University of Florida in Gainesville. She works at a large HR
outsourcing firm in the
Northern suburbs of Chicago managing intranet content. She enjoys reading, gardening, and learning about environmental issues.
We found each other online in 2002 and began dating shortly after meeting in person for the first time. Colin proposed on April 5, 2003, at the
Chicago Botanic
Garden.
Wedding Photos: Photos now online! Visit the client
area of Becky Hill Photo. Then enter the Name as patriciaandcolin and
Password as guest to view our proofs. To optimize download time, the
photos are not high resolution. Be assured that printed photos are
much sharper, should you place an order!
Honeymoon: We spent
two incredible weeks in Thailand for our honeymoon, from late March to early
April 2004. A few activities we planned in advance, but the rest we
just decided while we were there. Highlights in Bangkok our first day
included visiting Wat Po and the Grand Palace, browsing the food markets,
taking a longtail boat ride, and having proper tea at the famous Oriental
Hotel. Bangkok is a bustling city!
An overnight train ride (in a private cabin, basic and clean) brought us to
Chiang Mai, our base for visiting northern Thailand. We appreciated
the much slower
pace than Bangkok, and the slightly cooler temperatures. We visited a few rural villages, rode an elephant, and
climbed 306 steps to visit the beautiful Doi Suthep wat (temple) overlooking
the area. We stayed at the Lisu Lodge, where we ate at low tables on a
veranda overlooking orchards, took a (bumpy!) ox cart ride, and had the
opportunity to take tea with a few Lisu mountain tribe people in their home.
We also stayed at the Lanna Farm, where we each relaxed with a Thai massage
and created our own four-course lunch in a private cooking class. The
next night we stayed at a hotel in Chiang Mai itself, and we browsed
for hours in the famously overwhelming Night Bazaar!
The next day we flew from Chiang Mai to Phuket and that
afternoon refreshed our SCUBA diving skills with a shore dive from Kata Beach. We simply explored the main strip on Kata
that evening, and logged on to the Internet to book our onward flight and hotel plans.
The touristed parts of the island of Phuket seemed to live up to the
reputation as a paradise built up mostly with sprawling resorts, tour
operators, and seedy bars, unfortunately. Our one night there was
enough.
The next morning we were on our way almost 2 hours north to Khao Lak, a beach destination with a much less developed vibe than Phuket
and the bonus of being the closest port to the world-class diving of the
Similan Islands. The weather in Khao Lak that day was brutally hot,
but we found that fresh fruit shakes and fried banana fritters really helped
us cope! We booked ourselves onto a three night liveaboard dive boat
that left that night. Once we were on the boat, the breeze and cooler
open seas were a relief! The nine dives we did from the boat in the
Similans were memorable... huge rock formations to swim among, marine
life like sharks, sea snakes, an octopus, a sea turtle, and lots of fish and
coral. We only did one short snorkel during the trip, and that was our
one encounter with a manta ray! It glided through the water below us,
and it was all the passengers on the dive boat (9 of us) wanted to talk
about over lunch! We had one lazy day in Khao Lak the day after
returning from the dive trip... a welcome chance to just alternate
between reading in a beach chair and enjoying the water.
We spent our last two nights of the trip back in Bangkok, at
the luxurious Shangri-La Hotel along the river. Our room was
impressive and had a wonderful view of the river and the city, especially
captivating at night. We tried lots of transportation
options... finally riding in a ubiquitous tuk-tuk (once was enough), trying
out the modern BTS Skytrain, and a hopping on a river ferry. We
admired shops full of antiques, rugs, and silks at the upscale River City
Shopping Complex, and enjoyed fine dining on lovely dinner cruise. On
our very last night we splurged on a Thai dinner at the hotel, complete with
open-air river views, traditional Thai dancers performing among the tables,
and a fireworks display too (to celebrate the imminent Songkran New Years
festivities). It was an excellent way to cap off the trip.
Very early the next morning, our flights home were long and
tiring, but fortunately uneventful. Overall, we had a wonderful time
in Thailand and wish our trip could have been longer!
Thank you to everyone who offered suggestions and kind words before we
departed. It meant a great deal and really helped us make the most out
of our honeymoon!
About the Wedding:
The wedding ceremony and reception took
place on
Saturday, February 28,
2004, in the Grand Ballroom of the historic
Chevy Chase Country Club, in Wheeling, Illinois. The
ceremony was immediately followed by cocktails and a dinner/dancing
reception accompanied by a live band. The weather was in the 50s,
unbelievably warm for February in Chicagoland! We were so happy to
have family and friends from near and far with us that day.
Wedding Party:
-
Bride's Attendants: Susan (Brueschke) Pyles & Tina Brueschke
-
Groom's Attendants: Brian Mellon & Cameron John McGroarty
-
Flower Girl: Grace Sipols
-
Ushers: Erich Pyles & Phil Nothnagel
Pre-Wedding Events:
-
Rehearsal Dinner: Out-of-town guests, family members,
and the wedding party joined us at the rehearsal dinner on Friday, February 27, 2004, at
Big Bowl Asian Kitchen
in Lincolnshire, Illinois. It was great being able to spend time with
family before the big day, and the food was excellent!
-
Sunday Open House: The day after the
wedding, family mingled at an open house hosted by Patty's parents at their
home in Hinsdale.
-
Bridal Shower: A bridal shower luncheon
took place on
November 15, 2003, at The
Flame of Countryside. Photos are posted on the
bridal shower page.
Gift Registry: Our primary wedding registry was
at
Marshall Field's. We also registered at
Bed, Bath & Beyond and
Williams-Sonoma.
Directions: We had put
together both directions to the hotel and wedding site, and information on
what to see and do in the Chicago area.
Thanks again to everyone who helped make our wedding so
special!
Colin &
Patty
