Almanac Beer Co.

California Party

Vanderbilt at South Beach

New York Party

Summer

Our Wedding

In December of 2015, Arianna stumbled into a random bar in the East Village. When she went up to the bar to order a drink, the Bartender, James, grabbed her by the hand and called her, “Maganda.” Which means “beautiful” in Tagalog. With the perfect amount of liquor in her, her face lit up. Finally, after a year and a half of living in New York, she found someone who knew Filipino culture. After a couple rounds of free drinks, she put her number in his phone. They casually dated for a couple months before they both decided they didn’t want to be in a relationship yet. The two split, but kept in contact over the years. They weren’t dating, but… Arianna visited James while he was living in Georgia, they met up after work and school to eat at new restaurants and bars around New York City together. James took Arianna to her first Ranger hockey game and taught her how to ski in the Poconos, they hiked together, and even took a weekend trip to Boston, and Rhode Island together. After 3 years of friendship, Arianna began to realize that she might be falling in love with James. One night, after a day of galavanting in the East Village, James and Arianna found themselves in a Bank of America lobby at 3am, while waiting for an Uber. One conversation led to another, and the secret had spilled out of her. Arianna professed her love for James.

How we met

By the summer of 2018, James officially asked Arianna to be his girlfriend while they were spending a weekend in the Poconos. Fitting, as that was the first place they ever traveled together. It was a long distance relationship at first. Arianna lived in the Bronx, while James was in Staten Island, 33 miles apart, but with New York City transit and traffic, it was always an hour and a half to 2 hours commuting. When the Pandemic hit, Arianna and her bunny, Olivia, moved into James’ apartment in his parent’s downstairs. After a year and a half, they bought their first home together in the heart of West Brighton, Staten Island. In these sweet 5 years, they had traveled to 13 states and 7 countries. Arianna had brought James home to California to meet her family. They survived the pandemic and adopted a rabbit named Trevor. They navigated the ups and downs of homeownership, and survived the first few years of living with your significant other without killing each other.

Dating Life

In the summer of 2023, on the 2nd morning of their annual camping trip, James proposed to Arianna at their favorite place in the Adirondack mountains. They camped for 4 days with no cell service, and not a single person in sight. They celebrated their engagement in the mountains, kayaking in the lake, around the campfire, and under the stars. It couldn’t have been a more perfect engagement. By the end of 2023, instead of planning their wedding, they bought a vacation home in the Poconos! They wanted a place where they could take their future family and friends for weekend getaways and vacations, but they also wanted to rent the house out on Airbnb to leverage the expenses. So that’s exactly what they did. The next 6 months, all of their free time was spent renovating, planning, designing, decorating, shopping, landscaping, getting permits, and driving back and forth to Pennsylvania, until they were ready to start renting in May of 2024. On top of starting their own business, James got promoted to Detective at his job! Arianna also joined the team of a Non Profit called Proper Elevation that aims to teach high school students about financial literacy and manifesting the life they want. 2024 was a transformative year for the newly engaged couple. Since they decided to invest in their future life together, they decided to forego a traditional wedding, and elope in the Cook Islands instead. They worked their butts off at their regular jobs, and on their side business together. That first year of business has transformed them as a couple and as individuals. They learned so much about themselves and what they are capable of in such a short amount of time.

Engagement

In August of 2024, they flew a total of 18 hours to the Cook Islands where the tallest building is no taller than a coconut tree. They spent a week on vacation on the main island, Rarotonga, before getting married and honeymooning on the island of Aitutaki. Coming from New York City, a population of about 8 million, to a tiny cluster of islands in the South Pacific with a population of 17,000. They chose to get married on a tiny “motu,” called One Foot Island in the Aitutaki lagoon, where there were only 7 people in attendance. The officiant, the boat driver and wedding coordinator who both played the ukulele as they walked down the aisle, the photographer and videographer, and the Bride and Groom. In the Cook Islands, they snorkeled almost every day, they rode mountain bikes to get around, swam with humpback whales and sea turtles, hiked 5 hours to the highest point of the island, kayaked in the lagoons, played darts and sang karaoke at the local bars, and made friends with locals as they experienced this new culture together. They chose August to visit, and the 12th to get married, as it was the height of the annual Perseid Meteor shower. The evenings were spent watching the sunset, looking up at the Milky Way and wishing on shooting stars. The day before their wedding, they kayaked to a small island and had a picnic. Lunch from the resort, complete with Johnnie Walker Blue, Steinlagers and a bottle of Sauvingon Blanc. On the motu of Papau, in Aitutaki, they planted a coconut tree together, and wrote their vows. The morning of their wedding, they had breakfast together, and went to the Justice Department of Aitutaki to file their marriage license. They got ready together with the photographer and videographer, and when they were ready, a boat picked them up from their over the water bungalow. They rode 25 minutes to the motu, One Foot Island at the edge of the Aitutaki Lagoon. They got married in a private ceremony on the beach at 4pm island time on August 12, 2024.

Wedding

Our Story

Photos

Wedding Party

Q + A

California Accommodations 

This hotel is 6 minutes from the venue, Almanac Brewery. 15 minutes from Oakland Airport35 minutes from SFO Airport. 20 minutes from Oracle Park40 minutes to the Golden Gate Bridge1 hour from Napa.

Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham Oakland/Alameda

New York Accommodations 

Located about 20 minutes from Flagship Brewery. 17 minutes from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)40 minutes - 1 hour from JFK Airport45 minutes - 1 hour from LGA Airport2 hours from Big Blue

Hilton Garden Inn New York/Staten Island

Travel

Places WE like to visit in California

Friday June 6th - we plan on watching a SF Giants game to check out Oracle Park! Come through! Text Arianna for more details!

SF Giants Game

You HAVE to drop by my cousin's Filipino Restaurant in Oakland while you're out here! This place feels like home to Arianna, go and experience it for yourself. Of course, let them know that you're in town for our party! (They're closed on Mondays)

Lucky Three Seven

So cute here! Every time James and I go back home to California, it's become a tradition to visit a new winery! Wine country is less than an hour to 2 hours from Alameda/Oakland, so we always try to take advantage while we're out here! Aside from the breathtaking views, Sattui is cool because they have a meat and cheese market in the winery. We usually buy a couple bottles of wine, pick out a few meats/cheeses/snacks and pick a picnic table under the shaded trees. It's a vibe. (If you want to do tastings, they only offer that inside) If you're visiting California for our reception, take a day trip to wine country!

V. Sattui Winery

Walk around, shop, eat! Arianna’s favorite dishes: Dim sum, Hong Kong style beef chow fun, crispy pan fried Hong Kong style noodles. Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory. There’s also a great bar scene here!

San Francisco's Chinatown

If you’re visiting from NY, you better eat some Mexican food. California just does it better, and you need to experience that for yourself! My favorite in Oakland: Mi Grullense Taco Truck If you’re in SF: La Taqueria in the Mission District Honestly if you drive down International Blvd, all those taco trucks are better than anything they got in New York.

Eat Some Tacos and Super Burritos 

If you’re visiting California for the first time and you love sushi, get sushi from anywhere. The quality is better, the portions are better, and the prices are better than New York, hands down. Japantown is super cute, easy to get lost in the shops and restaurants!

San Francisco's Japantown

In New York

New York City can be overwhelming at times, but here's something low key to do! The Ferry Hawks are Staten Island's minor league baseball team! The stadium is right on the water in Staten Island and overlooks the Hudson River and Lower Manhattan. It's walking distance to the Staten Island Ferry, and offers great sunset views of the city. In the summertime, sometimes they have fireworks! Check out their schedule for their games!

Staten Island FerryHawks

Yankee Stadium

Easily one of our favorite activities. Sojo Spa is a Korean spa that offers all day access to their 7 saunas, and 10 different pools and baths. We usually start the day across the street at this Japanese supermarket / food court called Mitsuwa, where we eat and shop. Then we head to the spa and spend anywhere from 5-9 hours lounging here. Aside from relaxing, the facility sits right in New Jersey and offers breath taking views of Manhattan's skyline. If we were visiting New York, we would definitely spend one day unwinding here!

SoJo Spa Club

It's not summertime in Staten Island if you didn't wait in line to grab Ralph's Italian Ices! The Classic "Staten Island Date" is to grab Denino's Pizza, then grab Ralph's Ices right across the street for dessert.

Arianna & James

Arianna & James

A&J

California Party

New York Party