Suggestions on where to get married?

[WillParkinson]

Paul and I were originally going to get married in Hartford Connecticut. Got several people telling us that Hartford was kind of a blah town.

So help us find a better place where two middle-age guys on a shoestring budget might be able to go get hitched after 21 years of marriage to actually get married.

:-)

[Walk away]

1. I'm sorry I don't know but ..........Congratulations!!!!! .......... n/t

[Ineeda]

2. Don't know your location, but

The Boston area is great. Lots to do and see, if you're so inclined. Congratulations, BTW.

[WillParkinson]

3. We are in Milwaukee, WI

We are saving up our pennies to travel to the Northeast to finally be "Legal". And I just cannot wait.

[imdjh]

4. Iowa?

It's unusual. Call it chic. How many people do you know who have done it? Take a video cam and make a documentary about going to Iowa to get married.

[Walk away]

7. I don't even know any straight people who married in Iowa!

Is there a cool arty area? Maybe it has an Austin like place.

[imdjh]

9. I have never been to a state that didn't have some neat place to go.

I would expect that Iowa is no exception.

[JulieKatz]

19. Iowa VERY Friendly

Even rural Iowa! A paper, The Carroll Daily Times Herald, carried this marriage:

http://www.carrollspaper.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=8275&SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&S=1

The couple had a great time and were treated respectfully by all.

Iowa gets a bad rap: They have more educated people running around there than in most big cities. And if you like big cities, you have Des Moines and the Quad cities, too.

[HillbillyBob]

5. Congratulations! We are planning on going to Waterbury Vt

in November I ll pm where exactly the owner is a jp. He and his partner have an Adirondack style B&B on 85 acres and are set up to do it all there.
You will have to go the few miles into town to get license..

[gateley]

23. That sounds beautiful -- and Vermont in the autumn? nt

[barbtries]

6. i don't know

but Mazeltov!

[Demobrat]

8. Vermont!

Especially if you're doing a fall wedding, there's no place prettier.

[On the Road]

10. Don't Know if It's Availble to Everyone,

but I got married at the chapel in Old Campus at Yale. Right across the village green and through Phelps Gate -- very picturesque. And right down the road from you guys.

But Hartford is an old city. There must be lots of nice old venues and neighborhoods if you look around. You have to find the poetry in Hartford, possibly by invoking Wallace Stevens's places or his words:

What is this purple, this parasol,
This stage-light of the Opera?
It is like a region full of intonings.
It is Hartford seen in a purple light.
A moment ago, light masculine,
Working, with big hands, on the town,
Arranged its heroic attitudes.
But now as an amour of women
Purple sets purple round. Look, Master,
See the river, the railroad, the cathedral ...
When male light fell on the naked back
Of the town, the river, the railroad were clear.

[NorthCarolina]

11. Iowa, the State deserves LGBT travel AND you can drive there easily from WI.

Dubuque is on the Missisippi river, and is very scenic actually. You live in the heartland, so I would suggest that you consider getting married in the heartland. Congrats to you both.....

[Toasterlad]

12. I Spent a Week in Hartford One Night.

I'd definitely recommend somewhere else...but I'm afraid I don't know Connecticut well enough to suggest any place.

[mitchtv]

13. Provincetown?

Gay oriented perfect honeymoon spot. I always liked Burlington on Lake Champlain

[GodlessBiker]

18. +1

[dsc]

14. Let me speak a little for Iowa

First, it deserves the tourism given that they legalized marriage and are the first 'flyover' state to do so.

Second, you could go to Ames (big college town) or Des Moines (standard mid sized city) and surely find some great places.

Three, it would be closer.

[WillParkinson]

16. True, it would be closer...

But we're trying to put a lot into this trip. Paul wants to travel and sleep on a train, so we're looking at going farther east to allow him the opportunity. Plus, several of those states are close to the others. I've only been out of state a few times and really like being able to say I visited xxx.

I know it doesn't make much sense, but this is supposed to be the trip of our lives and we want to live it up as much as possible.

[dsc]

17. actually that makes a lot of sense

you might try a cruise on the st lawerence seaway which would cover parts of new england or maybe even a north atlantic cruise.

[Mopar151]

15. Burke Mtn., E. Burke, VT

Money goes a long way in "the Northeast Kingdom". And there is a toll road to the top of the mountain - my friends were married there, at sunset. The pictures were AMAZING!
The Ski area rents condos of many sizes - If you are really "bucks down", there is a campground at the base of the toll road.

And one of the worlds' best diners, the Miss Lyndonville, is a few miles down the road.

[Mopar151]

21. Amtrak to White River Junction, VT

WRJ/Lebanon, NH is a regional hub -river, road,rail, and air. East Burke is about 70 miles north - grab you a cheap rental, and head up I-91. Waterbury, mentioned in another post, is about the same distance up I-89 toward Burlington. The rail line roughly paralells I-89 north of WRJ (along the White River)
The drive up Burke still thrills me, and I've been going there for 30 years
http://vermontracing.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=42373

[plantwomyn]

20. We went to Iowa.

Iowa has no residency requirement. The people were great. I found a house to rent for $110 and day + $10 for each additional person. Sleeps 8. Has a deck overlooking the Mississippi. Veiws of the river from every bedroom. Eagles fly past every evening. Beautiful. We are more into the sites and the history than clubs. We would rather go fishing or check out the Indian mounds.
Our whole wedding, 5 days in house, travel, cake, flowers, license and officiant was under $1000.00. We drove from Indiana and the in laws came from LaCrosse, WI. 5 hours.
If you want the info just ask, I'll send you the websites.
The house is owned by MORMONS and has been christened, more than once, by my spouse and I. Could use some testosterone spread around!
:evilgrin:
Iowa City is suppose to be cool. http://gaytravel.about.com/od/iowacitygaytravel/a/Gay_Iowa_City.htm

[Amimnoch]

22. An alternative idea you might consider.

I live in conservative hell known to many as Texas.

My partner and I considered going out of state to make it official, but decided on a different way to go about it.

Since we live in a state that doesn't recognise same sex marriage, regardless of where we get married, and it didn't (still doesn't) look like that's going to change anytime soon, what we did:

We got with the minister of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Houston to officiate a ceremony for us right there in Houston. While the state doesn't recognise it doesn't mean we don't.

We had our ceremony, said our vows, and at the reception had our lawyer present all of our legal documents to sign in lieu of a marriage cert (medical power of atty, power of atty, living will, and last will and testament).

This way we were able to extend as close to same legal benefits as we could, while also having our family and friends there to see us announce out loud our love and dedication to each other for life.

anyway, just an other idea you might consider.

[gateley]

24. Best wishes from the bottom of my heart! And from reading the other replies, I vote for VT! nt

[applegrove]

25. Go to Montreal. They have a great gay village there I hear thought I've never been there. Also

a very european city. Nice for a little change of culture. Congrats!

[Mopar151]

26. The Amtrak train to VT

Is called The Montrealer, so there's a chance for more railroad adventure. Remember, you need a passport to go to Canada now!

[applegrove]

27. Oh that's right. I hope they have passports.