We met in quite a memorable way, on a bus in Vietnam . We both were halfway around the world, travelling between different villages. We call it tree bus. It was the Vietnamese New Year, Tết, in February, and the locals were transporting their goods for the holidays to their hometowns. Suddenly, due to the lack of space under the bus, a Vietnamese man brought on a large tree. This is what sparked the conversation between two Brits, a German, and an American. To our amazement we all booked the same hostel for that night. Over the next few weeks, five of us in total travelled around the south of Vietnam. One by one people started leaving as they had other commitments and travel plans, until it was just the two of us. Little did we know, we were travelling with the person we were one day going to marry.

Well this was a very sore subject for Ryan, he actually planned three proposals, (Greece, Iceland and Turkey), but due to Covid we got engaged in Bodrum, Turkey. One evening, Ryan suggested we get dressed up and go for a nice meal. After dinner and a couple drinks we set off to our nightly sunset spot on the end of the pier. I could tell Ryan was a little nervous, but his face was beaming with happiness. Suddenly, he got down on one knee, and asked me to marry him with a little nervous laugh after. I instantly said YES! We were able to capture the moment with the help of a local fisherman who was on the pier. We celebrated that night, downtown with sparklers in our drinks and traditional Turkish dancing through the streets of Bodrum.

Caroline's ring was created by her cousin Janelle Petitti who is a talented jewelry designer. Ryan and Janelle spent months corresponding and coming up with the perfect ring. The diamond is held in place by 4 prongs representing a lotus flower, the national flower of Vietnam.