Two Burning Man Virgins doing the Wedding Dance!
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iheartpr0n
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Two Burning Man Virgins doing the Wedding Dance!
Hi ya, friends!
My fiance and I decided to marry at Burning Man in 2011. We're super stoked!!! I even have chills & tears as I write this. We're both Burning Man virgins and would like to have our cherries popped on our wedding day. ;) I've been searching hardcore for information on weddings at Burning Man. We're planning to ask a friend to become ordained on ULC, but we need a back up plan if he declines (thankfully we have a lot of time to plan). Is there is a list of wedding officiants that attend Burning Man? How about photographers?
Also, are there specific locations in Burning Man that are ideal for weddings? Any highly recommended places? We only have a few friends coming, but would absolutely LOVE for others to get involved. Oh boy! Oh boy! Looking forward to getting feedback. We'll continue to do our research.
Thank you & much LOVE,
Marisa & Eric
My fiance and I decided to marry at Burning Man in 2011. We're super stoked!!! I even have chills & tears as I write this. We're both Burning Man virgins and would like to have our cherries popped on our wedding day. ;) I've been searching hardcore for information on weddings at Burning Man. We're planning to ask a friend to become ordained on ULC, but we need a back up plan if he declines (thankfully we have a lot of time to plan). Is there is a list of wedding officiants that attend Burning Man? How about photographers?
Also, are there specific locations in Burning Man that are ideal for weddings? Any highly recommended places? We only have a few friends coming, but would absolutely LOVE for others to get involved. Oh boy! Oh boy! Looking forward to getting feedback. We'll continue to do our research.
Thank you & much LOVE,
Marisa & Eric
i dream. i cry. i hurt. i love.
- Fire_Moose
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Congratulations! I have officiated at several Burning man weddings and there is a specific contact person that the ORG has set up to answer questions about weddings and help you with available resources and wedding information. I think the contact is [email protected] (or something close to that). The web site has the contact info.
Officiants from out of state do have some hoops to jump through to be official in Nevada so be sure to have them work on getting permission EARLY.
Officiants from out of state do have some hoops to jump through to be official in Nevada so be sure to have them work on getting permission EARLY.
- theCryptofishist
- Posts: 40312
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I'm going to be a party pooper and recommend having two separate events.
A wedding is a way of proclaiming your commitment to your community, and if you've never been to the playa, how are we "your community"? Also, if you have friends and family who aren't interested in the event, you're putting them in the position of either not coming or having to put up with difficult stuff.
And, a first trip to the playa and a wedding are both stressful events. Mixing the two is not going to make either less make-or-brake. And the playa is notoriously hard on relationships. Plan to have your wedding and your first trip to the playa separate.
I had a playa wedding (my 3rd trip and his 5th or so) and while it suited my husband just fine, and I'm not sorry I did it, but we never had the chance to have the family ceremony before his death. There were people at his memorial service who had never met him. I realize that's a special case, but I really think that it's hard core burners who should be married there, not starry eyes utopianists.
YMMV
A wedding is a way of proclaiming your commitment to your community, and if you've never been to the playa, how are we "your community"? Also, if you have friends and family who aren't interested in the event, you're putting them in the position of either not coming or having to put up with difficult stuff.
And, a first trip to the playa and a wedding are both stressful events. Mixing the two is not going to make either less make-or-brake. And the playa is notoriously hard on relationships. Plan to have your wedding and your first trip to the playa separate.
I had a playa wedding (my 3rd trip and his 5th or so) and while it suited my husband just fine, and I'm not sorry I did it, but we never had the chance to have the family ceremony before his death. There were people at his memorial service who had never met him. I realize that's a special case, but I really think that it's hard core burners who should be married there, not starry eyes utopianists.
YMMV
The Lady with a Lamprey
"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.
Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri
"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.
Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri
Fishy has extremely valid points. The wedding that I have loved officiating at the most was of two of my dear friends from the playa - I flew to their home town and we had a big reunion of playa folk AND all their family.
But with that said, the weddings on the playa do have the bonus of having the biggest celebration ever for a reception!
But with that said, the weddings on the playa do have the bonus of having the biggest celebration ever for a reception!
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iheartpr0n
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- Location: Dallas, TX
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Great points! Thanks... this is the kind of stuff we need input on. The more we hear things like this, the more inclined we are to go get hitched randomly and cheaply beforehand, and celebrate it at the playa.
But a little bit about us first.
We do not wish to celebrate our wedding in the traditional sense, in that we don't want any of our family there and only our closest friends (who would want to go). A reception for family would come later. We are not the type of couple who are extremely dependent on each other...we are expecting prolonged periods of being apart on this trip. Prolonged periods of making connections with others and working on things other than our relationship.
That being said however, we are attracted to the symbolism of burning man. We are attracted to the hardships, the community, and most of all the art and expression. The idea of the traditional wedding turns us off immensely. We currently live in the city and want to be as far away from that lifestyle as possible for our celebration.
You make great points, but we are not afraid of stress. We welcome the challenge, and we thrive in hard environments. However, in a community where over 90% of attendees are wayyyy more experience than us, we'll be the first to look somewhere else when those people tell us we'll only find failure.
And in response to "how are we your community?". Well you aren't, but we're going to spend the next year (if we plan to go) figuring out how we can be. We're artists after all. :)
And thanks to everyone else that pitched in some info, it's all going to get stored away in our memory banks :)
But a little bit about us first.
We do not wish to celebrate our wedding in the traditional sense, in that we don't want any of our family there and only our closest friends (who would want to go). A reception for family would come later. We are not the type of couple who are extremely dependent on each other...we are expecting prolonged periods of being apart on this trip. Prolonged periods of making connections with others and working on things other than our relationship.
That being said however, we are attracted to the symbolism of burning man. We are attracted to the hardships, the community, and most of all the art and expression. The idea of the traditional wedding turns us off immensely. We currently live in the city and want to be as far away from that lifestyle as possible for our celebration.
You make great points, but we are not afraid of stress. We welcome the challenge, and we thrive in hard environments. However, in a community where over 90% of attendees are wayyyy more experience than us, we'll be the first to look somewhere else when those people tell us we'll only find failure.
And in response to "how are we your community?". Well you aren't, but we're going to spend the next year (if we plan to go) figuring out how we can be. We're artists after all. :)
And thanks to everyone else that pitched in some info, it's all going to get stored away in our memory banks :)
i dream. i cry. i hurt. i love.
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Ranger Beauty
- Posts: 30
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Weddings 2010
Ranger Beauty here,
I'm an Ordained Minister with the ULC.
I have 1 wedding "booked" for 2010. Room for "4'" more "LEGALS."
When is your wedding?
Back-up good but you have to go with the Minister listed on your wedding license!
Blessed Be,
Beauty
I'm an Ordained Minister with the ULC.
I have 1 wedding "booked" for 2010. Room for "4'" more "LEGALS."
When is your wedding?
Back-up good but you have to go with the Minister listed on your wedding license!
Blessed Be,
Beauty
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iheartpr0n
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- Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2010 1:30 pm
- Location: Dallas, TX
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I vote for separate events
I'm heartened by your enthusiasm to come to Black Rock City, but I do think that checking it out first (this year?) and getting married, at least after having been there once would be better. I don't mean to discourage you, I just think it would work out all around better, that's all.
As far as family goes, I don't know your personal situations, but sharing this important event in your life with family and extended family, along with important friends, can be a really beautiful and joyous thing. Grandma? Grandpa? Little cousins? It'll only make it more joyous...really. Share the happiness.
I officiated at the wedding in S.F. of two of my burner friends. They then had an on-playa ceremony and cake and party a few weeks later. That worked out quite well. And note, their official ceremony was unique, creative and absolutely their own, and the groom certainly wore garments fit for the playa.
As far as family goes, I don't know your personal situations, but sharing this important event in your life with family and extended family, along with important friends, can be a really beautiful and joyous thing. Grandma? Grandpa? Little cousins? It'll only make it more joyous...really. Share the happiness.
I officiated at the wedding in S.F. of two of my burner friends. They then had an on-playa ceremony and cake and party a few weeks later. That worked out quite well. And note, their official ceremony was unique, creative and absolutely their own, and the groom certainly wore garments fit for the playa.
Rev. Dusty Sportswood
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iheartpr0n
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We appreciate your honesty, and the more we read about the scope of the trip, the more we're leaning towards getting married outside of the playa. It sounds like it will be challenging enough without having to worry about a ceremony there. But celebrate we will!!!! :P
i dream. i cry. i hurt. i love.
- CapSmashy
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- Ugly Dougly
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iheartpr0n
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- GutteralRetch
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- Ugly Dougly
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PlayaHoney
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