Unlike most first encounters, Nina Namvar and Robert Zanfir actually met for the first time, twice.
“We first met as part of the same circle of friends,” Robert explains. “She was beautiful, but I don’t think either of us gave it much thought at the time. The real turning point came when I set up another friend, Arash, from that same group with my best girlfriend, Ira.
Naturally, they hit things off because of my high-level match-making skills; and because he was friends with Nina, the three of them would hang out. Ira decided that I should also join them for the occasional coffee or brunch. So, we really and truly ‘met’ at that point, and we became close friends.”
“I REMEMBER BEING OVERCOME WITH EXCITEMENT THAT I WAS REALLY MARRYING THE MAN OF MY DREAMS.”
As regular coffee outings turned into lunches, which turned into dinners, Robert kept telling himself that his feelings towards Nina were nothing more than admiration. “I grew to realize that this admiration I had for her was, in fact, my falling in love with Nina,” he shares. “I knew I had to do something when she mentioned moving back to Vancouver, and that something was going in for a kiss one fateful night. She kissed me back! I was already in love with Nina at that point, so my thoughts immediately drifted towards a proposal. I knew she was the one.”
“My plan was to book a trip for her birthday and propose then,” Robert continues. “I told her that as her present, I would take her to Paris and the Cote D’Azur; but now I needed a ring. I went to my friend Vahe who made me a stunning diamond ring fit for my wife-to-be. I took the risk of keeping the ring on me so I didn’t have to keep it in the safe and spoil the surprise, since I knew Nina would look. Nonetheless, the big day was still almost spoiled because the photographer I had hired to follow us to Trocadero Square on the big day had become ill. Luckily for me a backup plan materialized, and instead of a morning proposal, it became an evening event on a private boat on the Seine, with the Eiffel Tower still in the background.”
Knowing they didn’t want to wait, the couple jumped headfirst into the wedding planning process. It was a fun and enjoyable experience, and the two did everything together – from cake tasting with Fine Cakes by Zehra, to meeting prospective vendors.
“We had managed to get everything done, including the Sofreh, which was the culmination of a lot of hard work and handcrafting by my mom and a few others,” says Nina. “It was so beautiful and traditionally Persian that during the ceremony, I even said ‘I do’ in a Farsi accent. The morning came and went quickly, and I feel as though the day truly began once we had our first look. I remember being overcome with excitement that I was really marrying the man of my dreams.”
The wedding day was spent taking photos with photography team, L’Atelier Lumiere International Photographie, and truly savoring the time with friends and family. Once the party got started and the newlyweds shared their first dance, the rest of the evening was a blur of happiness.
For their honeymoon, Nina and Robert spent a month vacationing in Italy and the Greek Isles.
WEDDING TALENT
Cake: Fine Cakes By Zehra, Ontario, Canada; Photography: L’Atelier Lumiere International Photographie, Ontario, Canada
