1. Real Weddings

Akari & Seth: A Cultural Wedding in Brooklyn, NY

It was a casual gathering of friends, a potluck celebration at a beloved Brooklyn sushi restaurant, when suddenly, inexplicably, Seth Werlinsky was on

It was a casual gathering of friends, a potluck celebration at a beloved Brooklyn sushi restaurant, when suddenly, inexplicably, Seth Werlinsky was on one knee, offering Akari Shimizu a piece of chocolate cake. I know it's not a ring, he said, but will you marry me? Akari, confused, blurted, No, sit down, Seth. What are you doing? In the stunned silence, someone said, Akari, he's serious. Fortunately, Seth worked up the courage to propose again, and this time Akari accepted. THE BRIDE Akari Shimizu THE GROOM Seth Werlinsky THE DATE June 16 The two met when Akari arrived in New York from Tokyo, and both wound up in the classroom where Seth (now working in public relations) was teaching English to Japanese adults. The proposal came after a four-and-a-half-year courtship.

One hundred and fifty origami cranes, folded by the couple (mostly by Seth, Akari admits) hung from the edges of the tent in the garden, where the lunch reception took place.
The Reception
The ceremony was, as Akari and Seth described it, a Japanese-influenced Jewish wedding officiated by a rabbi. The huppah (Jewish wedding canopy) was made of Japanese shoji (wood and rice paper). Sips of kosher wine came from a sake cup.
Akari and Seth topped off their light luncheon with a decadent dark chocolate cake with fresh raspberries and strawberries beneath white frosting, and decorated with yellow and orange flowers.
The Couple
The Escort Cards