This afternoon we’re heading west as we share the stunning engagement shoot and love story of newlyweds, Anisa and Ala.
Captured in beautiful locations in North West Wales and Cheshire, this gorgeous shoot features forests, mountains and waterfalls, what more could you want?
For now we’ll let Anisa and Ala fill you in on how first they got together, then the pair will be returning to the blog tomorrow to share their wonderful overseas wedding with us. Be sure to check back in, it’s a real beauty that you won’t want to miss!
With images by Amy & Omid Photography.
anisa says:
We decided we wanted to get married not long after we got to know each other. After meeting we continued our friendship over a distance for more than a year, then once we received the blessing from our parents, Ala proposed.We got married on 27th December 2016, in Antalya, Turkey, during a beautiful ceremony surrounded by family and friends overlooking the blue Mediterranean Sea!
How we first met is quite a long story, but in short: when I was a medical student, I ended up doing my elective in Kurdistan, Iraq, for a few months in summer 2013. Through friends and family, I was introduced to Ala (who was the friend of a friend) and that’s where it all began!
It was pretty much a case of love at first sight. The first few weeks together were really special as we spent time with Ala’s family, looking after his nephews, and hanging out at Ala’s favourite local spots!
On about day two of meeting Ala, I knew he was the one. I’d only known him for a few days but he was so easy to be with and the way I could be myself around him showed me that we’d be friends forever.
Ala is really kind. When I first met him and I saw the way he treated his family, friends, and even strangers around him, I was completely struck. He is fiercely loyal to his friends, and will go to great lengths to help people.
ala says:
I knew Anisa was the one for me when she first came to Iraq. Although she was on a busy medical elective she was so much fun! She takes life as it comes and she is always able to make light of even the most difficult situations. We got along so well that I knew I wanted to spend all my days with her. The way she interacted with all of my family, old and young, showed me that she would be someone I would want to build a family with.I love Anisa’s sense of humour. She is always bubbly and is able to cheer anyone up. She really lights up a room when she walks in and people are just naturally attracted to her. I also really love her dimples!
anisa says:
Our biggest wish for married life is to create a joyful and united family, to raise happy children, and to spread our own happiness to everyone around us.
When Ala proposed we wanted to make a big deal of our engagement and really celebrate our coming together with some beautiful memories that we could keep forever as we’d previously spent quite a lot of time apart in different countries.
Wanting to mark the occasion was one of the reasons that we decided to do a pre-wedding shoot with our photographers. We really enjoyed our day with Omid and Amy, visiting some beautiful locations in North West Wales. We saw forests, mountains and waterfalls. After that little road-trip across the border we came back to Chester where we had some beautiful photos in Grosvenor Park. We got to find out how we liked to be photographed and as a result felt a lot more ready for the shoot on our wedding day. We can’t believe how much we packed into one day – no request was too far out for Amy and Omid – and they were really up for all of our ideas! We got our photos back within a week so were able to share the images with all our friends and family. We have also printed and framed some in our new home!
We love the North! It’s where we got engaged and it’s where we’ve started our life together. I definitely feel the North doesn’t get as much love as it should, so when I found out about Brides up North I was chuffed that there is a blog dedicated to Northern brides!
