Gabrielle and Mohamad’s worldwide love story

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder… so Gabrielle and Mohamed traveled across the globe to rekindle their romance. A love story that travels from country to country (we love a worldwide fairytale), their journey to the altar started in Malaysia, ventured to Spain then to France (Oui Oui) all the way to Brazil, until they finally tied the knot in Dubai. The newlyweds gave us a glimpse into the details of their well-traveled love story and how their wedding was a fusion of Brazilian and Lebanese culture.

Table of Contents

The Love Story

Gabrielle met Mohamad at the Young Diplomats Forum Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in September 2018. During Gabrielle’s academic exchange in Pamplona, Spain in the first semester of 2019, he visited her and months after she visited him in Paris, France in the weekend, when he was living there for his doctorate studies. When she finished her exchange she visited him in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, as he moved back to live in the UAE. Soon after Mohamaed prepared a beautifully decorated yacht proposal in Dubai Marina. They exchanged rings on June 12th 2019, Valentine’s Day in Brazil and 2 years later on January 17th 2021 they had an engagement celebration at Berris Restaurant in Abu Dhabi to confirm the wedding date.

The Wedding

Like many Brides, Gabrielle was doing pre-wedding research, telling us “I used to see wedding pages before our wedding to have some inspiration”. Bridal homework is necessary! After stalking numerous accounts, she gathered her ideas and implemented these into her special day. Gabrielle told us that her “favorite elements of the wedding were the mirror gazebo with flowers, the corridor leading to the bridal sofa and the pink and silver backdrop with flowers. It was a very unique design created by Opulent Events, a wedding planner in Dubai”.

This multicultural wedding presented elements of both the Lebanese and Brazilian culture through music. The Bride “came walking with Mohamad and the Zaffeh and our families dancing with us from the bridal suite till the venue which was a garden in front of the beach. The DJ played a mix of Arabic, Brazilian and international music that made all the guests couldn’t stop dancing!”

The Venue

The couple wanted to have their wedding in Dubai, as this was set to be their home post wedding. “We chose to have a wedding party in Dubai, it has many beautiful resorts for weddings and we always wanted it outdoors. Since we held an intimate wedding for a few guests, we wanted a small garden in the oval shape located near the beach, and the only place we found with our requirements were at Sofitel Dubai The Palm Resort & Spa, in the Palm Jumeirah island in Dubai”.

Advice to Future Brides

“My advice for the future brides is to do the decoration that you always dreamed of, even if you have to save years for that, and also trust the wedding planner and contact them in advance. We planned our wedding almost 1 year in advance and we trust all suggestions of Opulent Events. On the big day we had a wedding party that was more than our expectations and everything went well because it was planned in advance. We also choose what we wanted for the decoration so this also contributes to seeing a wedding that we always dreamed of!”