Pittsburgh Wedding, Boudoir, Senior Photographer

Our 2019 Trip to Greece Part III (Athens)

After our time at the Meteora Monasteries, I was ready to experience culture in the city! So, onward we went to Athens.

I have never been to a city like Athens before. It is a modern metropolis in disguise. Historic sites so old as to have been built Before Christ speckle the city. Imagine sitting at a modern wine bar, looking to your left, and seeing the ancient citadel of the Acropolis perched on a rocky cliff less than a quarter of a mile away. Or, looking out your hotel window at night to see the Parthenon tower over the entirety of Athens, brighter than all of the city lights combined, pronouncing it’s majesty. The juxtaposition of ancient versus modern is hard to wrap your mind around, but you don’t have to think about it too hard because it is all right there, in front of your eyes.

Even just going on a run, starting and stopping in between the city’s traffic lights, we happened upon ancient structures less than 30 yards from the bustling street. You would think that there would be a gate surrounding these historic monuments for protection, but there was nothing in between them and the traffic. The residents of Athens paid them no mind, they went about their usual brisk walk to work and passed them as if they didn’t exist. Meanwhile, there I was, inspecting the monument’s cryptic symbols with awe because they were carved into the stone over 400 years B.C.

Walking around the city, we sadly found graffiti on more buildings than not. We were told that the city has tried to clean up the graffiti, only to have more painted on immediately afterward. The lack of respect some of the Athens residents have for their city because of this graffiti is incredibly disappointing. Due to this, when we were first exploring, my initial impression of Athens was that it was dirty. However, as we continued to explore, we found that the city is made up of beautiful niches, and each niche has its own personality. One section of the city is affluent, another section mostly hipster, another section is touristy, and another section is preserved in the Greek culture. I found myself falling in love with each of the city’s niches, and this made it easy to overlook the graffiti.

I realize that my explanation of Athens is incredibly lengthy, but there are so many patches to the quilt, so to speak, that I just want to do it justice!

<alt>lavender leigh photography in athens, greece</alt>

Cell phone snap. — We happened upon a Greek wine tasting that began right as we walked past this shop. Naturally, we hopped in to experience it.

lavender leigh photography in athens, greece — How cool is it to see the city of Athens in the background of these ancient structures?!

<alt>Carved in 438 B.C.</alt> — Close enough to touch (but I didn’t!)

The monument on Filopappou Hill, which you can see when standing at the Acropolis, two pictures above.

Our 2019 Trip to Greece, Part II (The Meteora Monasteries)

The highlight of the entire trip to Greece was experiencing the Meteora Monasteries, which are located in Kalambaka. The Meteora Monasteries are a UNESCO World Heritage site, and a five hour train ride from Athens. I first learned about the monasteries when I was researching the hidden gems of Greece; I came across the most awe-inspiring images of them.

Words don’t do these monasteries justice, but hopefully my images will. Each monastery is built on top of it’s own cliff, and looks as if it is carved into the cliff. During certain times of the day, a dense fog surrounds the monasteries, and they look like they are floating on clouds. It is an unreal sight.

Here are images from part II of the trip!

Stay tuned for part III of the trip, in Athens, which will be posted tomorrow!

<alt>lavender leigh photography's travels to the Meteora Monasteries and Athens, Greece</alt> — A first glimpse at the little town of Kalambaka.

lavender leigh photography's travels to the Meteora Monasteries and Athens, Greece — I was surprised to see the modern amenities in Oikia!

alt>lavender leigh photography at the Meteora Monasteries</alt> — This is Holy Temple of Dormition of the Virgin Mary. Fascinating back story; it was first created for the Greek pagan religion, and you can see ancient Greek symbols carved into the stone on the outside of the church. You can visually see the transformation of this structure as it was added on to became a Christian place of worship.

<alt>lavender leigh photography at the Meteora Monasteries in Kalambaka, Greece</alt> — Grecian Symbols carved into the stonework of the church.

<alt>meteora monasteries in Kalambaka, Greece</alt> — The Meteora Monasteries all began during the 9th or 10th century when Christianity was in an infancy phase in Greece. Deeply faithful in their religion, Orthodox-Christian hermit monks isolated themselves in the caves of cliffs.

<alt><alt>meteora monasteries in Kalambaka, Greece</alt></alt> — A closer look at the hermit caves. The hermits never descended from their caves: food had to be sent to them via a pulley system. The caves were not tall, so the hermits used the wooden planks to stand on so they could stretch and see the light of day.

Our 2019 Trip to Greece Part I (Santorini)

Happy New Year to all of you! This January weather is making me wish for warmer days in warmer places. I can’t wait to satisfy my wanderlust and travel again to those warmer places once the pandemic craziness is over!

In light of my dreams to travel, this blog post is dedicated to our 2019 trip to Greece. Santorini, Athens, and Kalambaka were the highlights of the trip. In today’s post, I will hone in on our time in Santorini; the island of white-washed towns, mesmerizing sunsets, amazing seafood, and ocean-side hiking.

Enjoy!

<alt>lavender leigh photography's travels to Santorini, Athens, and Kalambaka, Greece</alt> — The town of Perissa, where we stayed.

The best baked goods I've ever eaten; they were drenched in a sugary honey. — Our cute “guest house”

<alt>lavender leigh photography's trip to Santorini, Greece</alt> — Hiking the mountains surrounding Perissa.

<alt>lavender leigh photography's travel to Athens, Santorini, and Kalambaka Greece</alt> — The catch of the day.

lavender leigh photography's travel to Athens, Santorini, and Kalambaka Greece — Stray cats were everywhere…

Kelsey and Ryan | Holiday Marriage Proposal

A few inches of snow covered the grass on the lawn in front of the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning. Green holiday lights covered the young trees planted in this lawn. The sun was about to dive behind the horizon. I see a well-dressed and beautiful couple walking closer to me, on a sidewalk on the opposite side of the street from where I stood. “That’s them!” I told myself, as I turned my back away from the couple. I pretended to take cell phone snaps of the fountain in front of me. You see, I knew what was about to happen, because Ryan contacted me weeks in advance and asked me if I could capture his surprise marriage proposal to Kelsey in front of the Cathedral of Learning.

I casually glanced behind me to wait for Ryan’s signal. He took out his cell phone from his pocket, and began to set up a selfie of him and Kelsey in front of The Cathedral. That was the signal; the proposal was seconds from happening.

I actually started to tear up, happy tears of course. In that second-of-a-moment, I realized the astonishment, elation, excitement, and love this couple was about to experience. This is a moment that happens once in a lifetime, and I was the lucky one to be privy enough to witness and capture it, like a fly on the wall.

Ryan gets down on his knee. Kelsey’s mouth drops in surprise, and her hands cover her mouth. I hear my camera shutter click in rapid-fire speed, but it is too silent for the couple to hear. Ryan slides the ring onto Kelsey’s elegant finger, and the smile on her face depicted her response of “YES!”, and also the elation in her heart.

Ryan stands up and hugs his now bride-to-be. “Success,” I think to myself. I was able to be inconspicuous, and at the same time, I was able to be in the exact position to capture the emotion of the moment.

After a few hugs, words, and excited glances at the ring, Ryan looks at me and says, “Hi, Leigh!” As I cross the street, he explains to Kelsey that I was there to capture his proposal, and also a few pictures of them afterward in their special moment.

It took me six paragraphs to sum up a moment that happened in seconds, and yet, my words can barely paint the picture of how beautiful and emotional it was.

So, without further ado, here is a brief glimpse of what was captured on Ryan and Kelsey’s magical, snowy, winter engagement night.

<alt>pittsburgh pennsylvania wedding, engagement, marriage proposal and boudoir photographer</alt>

Ashley and Mike | Teutonia Mannerchor Wedding

“Let me quickly get dressed, and then I’ll help you with whatever you need!” says Ashley’s mother once I enter their home to begin photographing that day. So kind, to be concerned about ME rather than taking the time to get her own self ready on the day of her daughter’s wedding.

“Awe, you are so sweet! Please take your time; I have everything that I need!” I say to her as she scurried back to the master bedroom to put on her dress.

A few minutes later, Ashley enters the house, just having her hair and makeup application completed at the salon. She is calm and relaxed, and as beautiful as ever. “Leigh, I have something for you as a thank you,” she says as she hands me a bottle of wine dressed with ribbons. How is it that I feel like I am being treated like royalty on the day that should be all about Ashley and Mike?! But all of these kind gestures are a testament of the thoughtful and caring families that Ashley and Mike are a part of. Their beautiful personalities extend far beyond this. Ashley and Mike are all smiles all the time. Yes, this is because they are 100% perfect for each other, but they are also the most optimistic and go-with-the-flow couple that I know. During this time of the rules and restrictions in relation to the pandemic, they had to change their wedding plans three times over. They did it with grace, and didn’t let these changes bring them down whatsoever. They kept their chin up and continued to smile through it the entire time.

Speaking of smiles; seeing Mike’s as he watched Ashley walk down the aisle was one of my absolute favorite moments. He just beamed, and once he took his first steps with Ashley towards the altar, he smile became bigger, if that was even possible.

Take a look at some of my favorites from their wedding day…

<alt> Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania wedding, boudoir, portrait photographer, Lavender Leigh Photography</alt>

Bridal Accessories: Clarissa Boutique
Cake: Tasty Bakery
Ceremony Venue: St. Wendelin Church
Florist: Pete Donati and Sons
Hair Artistry: Studio G Kayla Scanlon
Invitation: With Love Daily
Makeup Artistry: Lexie Hudek
Photographer: Lavender Leigh
Reception Venue: Teutonia Mannerchor

Our 2019 Trip to Greece Part III (Athens)

Our 2019 Trip to Greece, Part II (The Meteora Monasteries)

Our 2019 Trip to Greece Part I (Santorini)

Kelsey and Ryan | Holiday Marriage Proposal

Ashley and Mike | Teutonia Mannerchor Wedding

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leigh@lavenderleigh.com