A Tropical Island Wedding At Villa dei d’Armiento in Sorrento, Italy

Some of the most romantic stories often begin at the most unromantic places. The Africa Business Conference at Harvard Business School, for instance, was where Alpha Mengistu and Alpha Kiflu were first introduced through mutual friends. And yes – among other things, these love birds also share the same name.

“Today, we live in Ethiopia; but at that time, I lived in London and he lived in New York,” Alpha explains. “When I first met him, I thought he was warm and charming – and I hope he found me irresistibly beautiful!”

“Today, we live in Ethiopia; but at that time, I lived in London and he lived in New York,” Alpha explains. “When I first met him, I thought he was warm and charming – and I hope he found me irresistibly beautiful!”

Their friendship soon turned into romance, and finally evolved into “full-blown love.” While vacationing in Zanzibar, Alpha proposed to his then-girlfriend after a romantic private dinner on the beach. Soon after, the wedding planning process began.

With family and friends flying in from all over the world, the couple wanted their wedding celebration to span multiple days. After deciding to host a destination wedding in Italy, Villa Dei d’Armiento in Sorrento was chosen as the wedding venue.

“Over the following year, we managed to remotely plan the wedding of our dreams,” says Alpha. “And when the moment came to pick our wedding photographer, I know we made the perfect choice – Thanasis Kaiafas is a true artist who knows how to make the couple feel comfortable and relaxed.”

Everyone was seated at a long banquet table in the shade of giant palm trees. The villa itself was landscaped with tropical flowers and greenery, yet the décor was kept minimal in order to allow the villa’s natural beauty to shine through.

Since the bride and groom are first generation Ethiopian American, it was also important for them to incorporate elements of Ethiopian culture into the reception. The newlyweds entered the reception area to a traditional Ethiopian wedding song, and a DJ played Ethiopian music during the dance party.

Another memorable part of the wedding was the food. During the cocktail hour, a chef made fresh mozzarella by hand for the guests. Dinnertime was met with guests doing the wave up and down the table, spinning their napkins over their heads, and clinking glasses to signal the newlyweds to kiss.

“Our wedding was everything we had dreamed of; and I know that our wonderful photos will help us relieve that happy day again and again for many years to come,” says the bride.