Day 8 - Rome

     I've never seen a church made almost wholly of gold, the St. Peter's Basilica changed that.

 By Julia Dankov

Day 7 - Assisi

     Assisi; everything you would expect from a small countryside town, with narrow alleys and quaint shops.

 By Julia Dankov

Day 6 - Florence

     The Duomo could be described in a few words; beautiful and easy to get lost in.

 By Julia Dankov

Day 5 - Paris

     The Mona Lisa is a lot less intimidating than I thought she would be in person.

 By Julia Dankov

Day 4 - Paris

     Had French coffee this morning, thought, "what the hell have I been drinking all these years?"

By Julia Dankov

Day 3 - Paris

     Nothing's better than the Eiffel Tower at night, not even the crepes I had this morning.

By Julia Dankov

Day 2 - London

     Apparently, even getting pooped on by birds isn't enough to make a Buckingham Palace guard laugh.

By Julia Dankov (who had to learn this the hard way)

Day 1 - London

     Visited the place where Charles Dickens grew up, then rode a double decker. Accomplished? Hell yeah.

By Julia Dankov

Europe Here I Come!

     Hello everyone. I, Julia Dankov, will be going on a two-week trip to Europe, visiting everything from Italy to France to England, quite soon. While on this trip, I'll try my best to update the VMPhotography blog as much as possible and keep something resembling an online travel log or journal. Every day I'll write 16 words, no more and no less, summarizing that day. When the idea first came to my head I was sure that I would have the easiest time and that it would really take no effort whatsoever. Oh, was I wrong. Of course, I still accept the challenge and promise to do all that's in my power to succeed in it! See you all soon.

By Julia Dankov

Tying the Knot

     Marriage really symbolizes and celebrates the unity of two people and their eternal binding. Of course almost all would agree with this statement, however the Guatemalans and Mexicans take it a step farther and truly actualize it. As a symbol of the strong bond that marriage brings, many Guatemalan and Mexican couples choose to incorporate the old tradition of 'atando el nudo', or the 'tying of the knot' into their wedding ceremonies.

     This tradition refers to the act of literally tying the bride and groom to one another, either by their shoulders or wrists. After having been bound together, the couple is blessed by the priest. In Guatemala, long silver ropes are used to do the deed and in Mexico, extra long rosaries are used instead. In the end however, the general idea is still the same. To any couple that really wishes to get across a message of strong unity and binding, this tradition is just what's needed.

By Julia Dankov

The Hora

     There are many essential things to a wedding. The exchanging of the rings, the feast, the dancing, these are all activities seen at almost all the weddings that take place all over the world. No Jewish wedding, however, is complete without one specific activity; the Hora. 

     
     The Hora is a traditional 'chair dance', where few strong and wedding guests hoist both the bride and groom above the dancing crowd while singing the traditional Jewish song 'Hava Nagila'. Some people choose to fill their wedding nights with food and dancing, however the Jewish people choose to add something quite unique, fun, and altogether that much more special; the Hora. 


By Julia Dankov