Let’s start off by declaring that Jinal and Tanya are the worst Wingman and Wingwoman ever. They both attended the Matrimonial Convention in Atlanta on a whim and to support their respective friends, who are still single (and great catches!).
To set the scene, one must fill out an application to “apply” to the convention and send in their “bio data” which consists of information like your height, profession, citizenship status, email, phone number, and parents names along with the ancestral villages to which they belong - this is to prevent people from the same lineage from dating but also because that matters to many in the Gujarati community. Speaking of the Gujarati community, Tanya had no idea this was a Gujarati ONLY convention as her friends has left out that crucial little detail - so for context, Tanya was essentially the sole Catholic at a Baptist convention.
The Convention is 1.5 days long and starts off with a themed night, which was Casino Royale that year. That evening, Jinal and Tanya barely spoke to each other as Tanya was busy being her extroverted self and talking to literally everyone else.
Finally, as the night winded down Tanya and Jinal found themselves sat next to each other at the bar where Jinal offered to buy Tanya a drink only to have her spill it all over the tabletop within seconds of picking it up. For those of you who don’t know, Tanya can be fairly clumsy, and spent the next 15 mins apologizing for the spill which Jinal graciously wiped up and they said their goodbyes.
The next day starts with everyone being handed a name tag with a table number and a (literal) binder full of men and women (with their bio data) who are in attendance, sorted by age and table numbers. Each person was instructed to give a 30 sec introduction of themselves to the table and once everyone had a chance to talk, a gong was rung and the gentlemen stood up and rotated to another table and a new flock of men sat down. This cycle repeated until all 26 tables had interacted.
Now, as fate would have it, Anisha, Jinal’s lovely, beautiful, and hilarious friend, happen to be one of the girls at Tanya’s table. Both Tanya and Anisha hit it off instantly and have becomes very close friends. Meanwhile, back to the convention, everyone had to shortlist their top 20 picks in priority order (#1 being the one you were most interested in) who they wish to have a 15 min one on one chat with.
Jinal was #3 on Tanya’s list as she figured after their clumsy start Jinal probably wanted someone with a bit more dexterity. Jinal, however, listed Tanya half way down the list - no one knows why - but Jinal claims it’s because Tanya spilled the drink on purpose to get out of talking to him so he didn’t want to “waste his top spots for someone who probably didn’t want to chat.”
Anyway they did end up being matched and ran out of time before they ran out of things to talk about, which still remains true today. Finally, Jinal got Tanya’s number and asked her out on a date where they ate, drank, and talked for hours until the restaurant had to kick them out.
The rest, as they say, is history...
Jinal and Tanya both love traveling and try to visit two new places each year. In May 2018, after much deliberation, they decided to vacation in Hawaii, which neither of them had been to. Cutting to the chase, Jinal is a bit of a procrastinator and had only ever asked about Tanya’s taste in jewelry in a passing conversation many months prior and never brought it up again.
Tanya had also stipulated that Jinal ask her parents for permission prior to any proposal, and besides, her mother was still pestering her about when they would tie the knot so she believed there was no way the chat could have been had yet. Thus, Tanya was not expecting anything on this trip other than exploring the amazingly beautiful Hawaii together.
On their 4th day on holiday, Jinal and Tanya had made plans to see the sunset on top of the (inactive) Haleakala volcano. As they drove steadily up the mountain, despite the sporadic rain and hairpin turns, they were rewarded with the most stunning views once they climbed above the clouds and reached the summit of the volcano.
Once there, Jinal said “be right back” and Tanya assumed he had to go use the restroom for the millionth time that day. Jinal was actually trying to flag down an innocent bystander to play camera man to capture the pivotal moment. A few mins later Jinal tapped Tanya on the shoulder and got down on one knee and gave a lovely speech which Tanya has no recollection of as she was in shock (as was the lady behind her who kept yelling “oh my god” repeatedly throughout the proposal). It was a magical moment with the most perfect setting imaginable as you can see from the picture above.
Photo credit: Asian tourist couple on their honeymoon who did this exact pose and inspired us to do the same.
P.S.- Jinal asked Tanya’s parents for her hand in marriage while she was on a quick visit to the dentist and he had explicitly instructed Jesmine to keep annoying Tanya with questions about “settling down” to throw off the scent of any upcoming proposal. Sneaky sneaky.
Tanya and Jinal's friends flew from around the country and made their morocco inspired backyard party EPIC! It was a labor of love as their friends and family slaved away to throw the perfect event, complete with Mediterranean food, lit up pop up tents, handcrafted floral arrangements, and even a photo booth. Everyone feasted, drank, and danced the night away under the string lights. It was a very memorable (and mosquito free) evening which the couple won't soon forget!
If it's one thing Jinal and Tanya love doing, it's traveling! They try to take at least 2 big trips each year and thus far have visited Montreal, Paris, Malaga, Granada, Barcelona, Seattle, Napa, and Maui in two short years.
They look forward to a lifetime of adventuring and making memories at home and abroad