As they observed the canals, Ms. Mungiguerra said she saw Mr. Chan remove something from his pocket and finally realized what was happening.
The surprise overseas proposal was no simple task, Mr. Chan said. “I wrote a note and tied it to the ring box for T.S.A. because I had heard sometimes it comes up on the metal detector.” It read, “Please be discreet with this box.”
The couple postponed their original wedding date of Oct. 17, 2020, because of the pandemic. They were married almost a year to the day later, on Oct. 16, 2021, at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas.
When Jeffrey Hopkins, the father of one of Ms. Mungiguerra’s bridesmaids, Erin Hopkins, heard about the wedding, he made a joke about officiating. He may have been kidding, but the couple thought it was a great idea and Mr. Hopkins was ordained by the Universal Life Church to celebrate the event.
“We’re not religious and we didn’t want a stranger,” Ms. Mungiguerra said.
About 120 guests attended the ceremony in the center’s sculpture garden, which Mr. Chan described as a bit of an oasis. “In the back, where the water features are, when we were standing there, the sound of the fountains, it was surreal,” he said. “It makes you feel like you are not in the middle of the city.”
“We also felt more comfortable as the wedding was entirely outdoors,” Ms. Mungiguerra added.
In lieu of a traditional wedding cake, the couple had a croquembouche and a groom’s cake with a New York Rangers hockey theme. Their cocktail napkins featured their two rescue dogs, Josey, a Border collie, and Bailey, a black lab.
“It was like my Pinterest board come to life, seeing the skyline and being under the lights,” Ms. Mungiguerra said. “You’re in your own secret garden.”
