The groom’s father only had one suggestion when it came to finding his match: “Make sure you find yourself a wife from a faraway island. Don’t go to a neighboring island because they’re going to be your cousin or something.” The groom, Viktor, is a 17th-generation Kyrkogårdsö resident. Kyrkogårdsö is one of the more than 6,700 Aland Islands, off the coast of Finland. Viktor’s small home island is storied with generations of fishermen. Abi is from Australia, an island that is in many ways the total opposite of Kyrkogårdsö; Australia is the biggest island in the world.

Their friends and family joined Viktor and Abi in Kyrkogårdsö for a three-day wedding: On day one, guests were treated to a dinner and rounds of shots of local spirit as part of a Scandinavian tradition of snapsvisor. On day two, the couple hosted a mini championship game that included well-known classics such as wife-carrying and Nokia phone-throwing. Abi and her bridesmaids sailed to a separate island so as to avoid seeing the groom before the wedding day. On their wedding day, Abi and Viktor exchanged vows, with Abi reciting: “I promise to stay young at heart, to surround us with happiness and remind you why I love you.” They high-fived, kissed, then walked out of the church.

At the reception, Abi took the mic and shared: “ For those of you who don’t know I did all the chasing. When the time finally came when I thought he’d kiss me goodbye, he gave me a high-five.”