SHARONA & TAL

A FESTIVAL OF LOVE.

Sharona and Tal are from Israel and at their wedding they combined a traditional Jewish ceremony with the environment they love - the desert. The mountainous landscape, stripped to the core, is typical of the Middle Eastern region, and the Negev Desert, which the couple chose for their wedding, covers a full 69 percent of Israel. It is dotted with cities, towns and kibbutzim, with Beersheva as its administrative capital. The ceremony and wedding festivities took place near Beersheva in a Bedouin settlement, the centerpiece of which is the Sfinat HaMidbar (translated from the Hebrew Desert Ark) hospitality center. Eighty wedding guests were easily accommodated here, with accommodation provided right in the camp and a great breakfast. The ceremony was held in the open air, according to millennia-old Jewish tradition, in the relaxed atmosphere made possible by the modern alternative approach. The betrothed was married by a rabbi and could not miss both the wedding canopy called the chupa, under which the ceremony takes place, and the breaking of the glass, where the shards symbolize the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, but also good luck. And there was also a dance where the newlyweds, seated on chairs, are carried overhead by the wedding party like a royal couple. "We called our wedding a festival of love. Everyone wore white, the tables sagged under the food, there was no shortage of Bedouin delicacies and meat lovers, vegetarians and vegans found their own. We blessed each other during the ceremony. The celebration was full of emotions, laughter and songs. After the feast, there was a crazy party, we set up lots of games and the energy was incredible!" That's how Sharona describes her wedding day, and she adds with a smile that perhaps the only thing she missed was the help of a wedding coordinator - after all, it takes a lot of work to prepare such a concentrated party on your own and still enjoy it.

Text: Helena Stiessová | Photo: Yarin Taranos