Some love stories begin with a chance encounter. Ours began somewhere between Seattle and the glaciers of Alaska, with a little serendipity, two miniature bottles of wine, and absolutely no idea what was to come.

PD had traveled all the way from South Africa for an Alaskan cruise, where our paths crossed for the very first time. What started as an unexpected dinner with colleagues turned into a night of conversation, a few bars, and a bottle of Cabernet Franc. By the end of the cruise, we were inseparable.

Of course, there was one small complication. We lived on opposite sides of the world.

What followed was nearly a year of long-distance love, countless FaceTime calls across time zones, and an impressive number of flights. We met wherever and whenever we could, from the Bahamas to Mexico to South Africa.

It was in the Bahamas, overlooking the Caribbean with a bottle of South African Cabernet that PD had carried halfway around the world, that we decided this was something worth crossing oceans for. Never mind the forgotten corkscrew, the broken cork for the 2010 Kanonkop Cab Sav, or the $75 corkage fee.

Our second date was perhaps even more ambitious: a spontaneous safari in South Africa’s Kruger National Park. After more than 40 hours of travel, a few wrong turns, and plenty of biltong, we found ourselves surrounded by elephants, endless landscapes, and the magic of the African bush. It was there, in a tented suite overlooking the river, that PD first said, “I love you.”

Since then, our story has unfolded across continents, through vineyards, over countless bottles of wine, and beneath more star-filled skies than we can count.

And when it came time to propose, PD brought us back to where so much of our story began: Kruger National Park. A New Year’s Day proposal in the bush was the plan, until a spectacular African rainstorm had other ideas. Instead, surrounded by orchids, roses, and some of South Africa’s finest wines, we got engaged in a beautiful wine cellar.

From glaciers in Alaska to the wild beauty of Africa, our greatest adventure has always been finding our way back to one another.

And now, we’re bringing our favorite people to South Africa to celebrate the next chapter.

The best stories are meant to be shared. Preferably over a bottle of wine.

With love,

Sierra & PD