Donna Otto hasn鈥檛 decided on wearing a fascinator or a new hat on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle鈥檚 wedding day, but she knows where she鈥檒l be at 4 a.m. on Saturday when the royal couple say their 鈥淚 dos.鈥�
Otto, like most Canadians, is thousands of kilometres and many time zones away from the ceremony at St. George鈥檚 Chapel at Windsor Castle, but she said she鈥檒l be up early in Victoria to toast the newlyweds.
Theatres, cathedrals, libraries, hotels and banquet halls across sa国际传媒 are booked for morning wedding celebration parties, with the hearty souls on the West Coast rising before dawn for the noon-hour ceremony in Great Britain.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to enjoy every bit of it,鈥� said Otto, a member of the Royal Commonwealth Society鈥檚 Vancouver Island branch.
鈥淓mbrace it. My dress is a work in progress. I鈥檓 sure I鈥檒l have either a fascinator or I鈥檓 seriously thinking of getting a brand new hat.鈥�
The Royal Commonwealth Society and the Victoria chapter of the Monarchist League of sa国际传媒 have teamed up to host a royal wedding breakfast buffet bash at the city鈥檚 139-year-old Union Club. Guests are invited to arrive at 3 a.m.
They should be dressed in appropriate wedding attire while they they watch a live television broadcast of the wedding.
鈥淚 call it fun, frivolous and foolish,鈥� Otto said.
鈥淲hy not? Sometimes life is too serious and we just need to 鈥� interject something that鈥檚 really fun to do. It鈥檚 an opportunity to focus on something very positive and that part of it is wonderful because there is such negative news in the world all the time.鈥�
The Empress Hotel is not hosting an early-morning watching party, but will replay the wedding in its Q Bar during the day.
It is also offering a Royal Afternoon Tea throughout May, with a tea inspired by Markle鈥檚 favourite (mint green tea infused with fennel, anise and licorice root) and a caramel banana cake said to be Prince Harry鈥檚 favourite.
Those who want to raise a glass to the happy couple can choose from a selection of cocktails favoured by members of the Royal Family, including a Dubonnet Cocktail (the Queen) or a Negroni (Markle).
Other events around town include a royal wedding breakfast buffet at SHOAL Centre in Sidney and a tea party at the Cook Street Village Activity Centre in Victoria.
David Spence, a retired United Church minister, said he plans to wear his McDuff tartan kilt to the breakfast wedding ceremony at Victoria鈥檚 Union Club.
At his Brentwood Bay home, Spence, who performed the wedding ceremony for Paralympian and activist Rick Hansen and Amanda Reid, said he has become enamoured with Harry and Meghan and what they represent to the world.
鈥淧eople are infatuated with a young couple who reflects the diversity of what the modern Commonwealth is all about,鈥� said Spence, who is the Vancouver Island president of the Royal Commonwealth Society.
鈥淭hey have an energy level they are sharing with the world. They鈥檝e gone through some difficult parts of their lives in order to reach this level of identity with people.鈥�
鈥� With a file from the sa国际传媒