Same sex couples wed at Museum
Two couples tied the knot and enjoyed their wedding breakfast at Rotorua Museum yesterday (19 August) - the first day that same sex couples could legally marry in New Zealand.
Rachel Briscoe and Jess Ivess from Bay of Islands and Richard Rawstorn and Richard Andrew from Christchurch won a competition run by The Edge radio station to win their all-expenses paid wedding, which was broadcast live on both national TV and radio.
The couples were in Rotorua for over a week prior to their nuptials, planning their weddings, hosting hen and stag parties, and enjoying some of the region's activities and attractions.
Rotorua Museum sales & marketing manager, Joanna Doherty, said the museum looked absolutely stunning for the historic occasion.
The outside was lit up in rainbow colours the night before, and inside the venue were dashes of blue light on the walls and pink on the sculptures to match the colour themes chosen by the couples.
The atmosphere at the museum was amazing with guests and onlookers giving a rousing cheer as the formal nuptials were completed, and again when the legal documentation arrived for signing.
TV2's current affairs show 20/20 will screen a documentary of the event on Thursday 12 September.