In the midst of all this wedding planning, I almost forgot that AFTER the happiest day of my life… I get to go on VACATION!!! As we are approaching the 8 month mark, I thought Mr. Dish and I had better sit down and really think about where we’d like to go. It will be our first real vacation, just the two of us!
I’ve heard many brides say it: You NEED a honeymoon, just to recover from the wedding madness.
I can almost hear the ocean from here! (Image via destination360.com)
I have no doubt that we will both need some R&R after our nuptials. But I also think our honeymoon will be our first big adventure together as a married couple. So I’d like to go to a place where we can do a little exploring!
My two other requirements:
- Beach access.
- A place neither of us has been before.
I made sure these requirements were known when we went to the travel agent last weekend. The whole thing got me thinking… when did people start going on honeymoons in the first place?
According to Wikipedia, in early 19th century Great Britain the newly-wed couple would travel around to visit family members who couldn’t come to the wedding.
But if we go back even further (watch out, I’m going to get Biblical on you), Deuteronomy 24:5 says,
When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any public duty be imposed on him. He shall be exempt for one year for the sake of his family, to bring joy to the wife he has married.
So the groom gets a free pass for a year so he can hang out with his wife?!? Sounds good to me! But what about the origin of the word “honeymoon?” Not only is the beginning of the marriage often the “sweetest” time in the relationship, but the new couple also traditionally drank honey wine, or mead. Here’s an explanation from Beth Israel Synagogue:
Mead was generally regarded as an aphrodisiac, among other things. It was also thought to restore youthful vigor and the gift of song and poetry. The Greeks referred to it as “ambrosia” and “nectar of the gods.”
I found a much more disturbing explanation from this website, providing the Scandinavian origin. Apparently “honeymoon” finds roots in the Norse word, “hjunottsmanathr.” (If you can pronounce this, I will give you a million dollars.)
Northern European history describes the abduction of a bride from a neighboring village. It was imperative, that the abductor, the husband-to-be, takes his bride to be into hiding for period of time. His friends assured his and her safe keeping and kept their whereabouts unknown. Once the bride’s family gave up their search, the bride groom returned to his people.
What?!? Abduction? I will go quite willingly to a tropical paradise, thank you very much. After much thought, we think we have settled on a honeymoon destination that fits the bill. But we haven’t booked it just yet, so I don’t want to jinx it! But take my word for it: we are STOKED.
Image via mysteriesworld.info
Where did YOU go on your honeymoon? If you had to do it over again, would you change anything?
Great post! I hadn’t thought of where the word had come from before. Very interesting stuff.
We got married on the island of Maui, which has worked out great as it makes a great excuse to try and go back for our anniversary. Although we haven’t made it back every year, as much as we would have liked to.
Congrats on your wedding, and enjoy your honeymoon! Did you decide on a location yet?
Here is the link to our Hawaii Travel Blog if you are interested in Hawaii:
http://hawaiianadventures.wordpress.com/
That’s interesting – I didn’t know about any of this but the early British explanation is almost what my fiance and I are doing. Like you guys, we’ve never been on holiday together, but we decided to stay in the UK and have a low-key “mini-moon” to visit people after the wedding, then we’ll blow all our money on a longer, more relaxed holiday next year… It must be noted, though, that I was completely happy with this plan until it rained for the whole of June. Now I’m craving a beach
So funny! It will be fun visiting folks with your new hubby… and you’ll have plenty of time to plan (and save for!) your beach getaway!