The Lovebirds That Had A Cross-Cultural Destination Wedding In The Yarra Valley


The Real Wedding of Lisa & Jacob

Cross-Cultural wedding in Yarra Valley
Photo by @love.and.other

A love story ten years in the making, Lisa and Jacob share with Wedded Wonderland how they brought together their respective cultural backgrounds at one of Australia’s most beautiful wine regions.

The Love Story

In Rosebud of December 2013, Jacob and Lisa became acquaintances by introduction of Jacob’s cousin. When the pair were introduced, they found themselves incredibly drawn to each other. After a drink at the Bay Hotel and a first date back in Melbourne, the rest became history.

When it came to the proposal, “There was a plan A which involved Jacob taking me back to where we had first met all those years ago in Rosebud. However, COVID-19 played its part, and the Melbourne lockdown ruined this plan”, Bride Lisa shares.

Couple in Yarra Valley
Photo by @love.and.other

But Jacob thankfully had a plan B, “It happened to be the week of my 30th birthday and he decided the best place to do it was in the comfort of our newly bought and painted house. Jacob decided he couldn’t do it alone and so got the help of some family to set up the living room for the big moment.”

When Lisa arrived at the house, she was blindfolded and told to wait in the living room. He proceeded to remove the blindfold, and her eyes were met with the love of her life down on one knee.

“It’s a memory we look back on fondly and a nice thing to connect us to the house”, she recalls.

The Blending Of Two Worlds

Lisa comes from a Vietnamese background, and Jacob is of Lebanese and Spanish descent.

Couple in an embrace at their wedding
Photo by @love.and.other

“It was important that our wedding incorporated the trio of cultures to reflect who we are and how beautiful the combining of three unique cultures can be”.

“To do this, we incorporated a guzheng player, a Lebanese drummer and a flamenco dancer performance into our wedding reception. The guzheng player performed during entrees to set a romantic scene, and we then coordinated the Lebanese drum performance with my second dress reveal (which was a surprise to the Groom and audience) so that we could create more impact and mark the beginning of the night to get the dance floor started.”

Drummers at a wedding
Photo by @love.and.other
Traditional dancer
Photo by @love.and.other

“Once desserts were ready to be served, we surprised our guests with one last performance from Senes Flamenco who performed a passionate and romantic flamenco dance. The flamenco performance was unique to us, and felt extremely special as Jacob’s parents also had a flamenco dancer performance at their wedding. It could now be a tradition we pass down to our future children at their wedding”, Lisa details. 

The Wedding

Lisa and Jacob hosted their 260 guests at the divine Bramleigh Estate in Yarra Valley, a venue enwrapped by the soft surrounds of the Australian landscape.

Couple in Yarra Valley
Photo by @love.and.other
Couple smiling on their wedding day
Photo by @love.and.other

“The most memorable moment of the night was our first dance as we had spent some months choreographing it. We selected the modern day take of Take My Breath Away by Boyce Avenue as it was slower and more romantic than the original track.”

“It was one part of the evening we were able to embrace one another and to really take a moment to ourselves to appreciate the love we have for one another other and soak in the fact that we were so blessed to be surrounded by our family and friends.”

“We also organised for pyrotechnics and dried ice which made our first dance feel even more magical and romantic. Looking back at photos now, it reminds us of how united we felt and how special this moment was to us. It’ll be a moment we never forget.”

Advice To Future Brides

When Lisa looks back on her nuptials, she only wishes she had had more time with her guests, “I would have extended the time we had with family and friends so that we had more time to celebrate with everyone and most importantly continue to dance the night away!”

Supplier Spotlight

Did you have a destination wedding and want an editorial feature on Wedded Wonderland? Send us an email with a little about your day alongside your wedding album to:

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Posted in Real Weddings by wedded wonderland


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