Walter (54) and Anja (52), the couple that runs metal and hard rock café ‘Skulls’ in the Antwerp town of Geel got married last weekend. The symbolic ceremony was conducted in their own café by local mayor Vera Celis, who had been asked to enter into the spirit of the occasion and wear appropriate attire. The couple tied the knot in the presence of children, grandchildren, friends and Mayor Celis, who intimated that "even if this had been a formal wedding, I would still have dressed like this if they had asked me."
"I’m not really into ‘Metal’, but I gathered together some togs that suited the occasion," laughs Mayor Vera Celis, who like mayors across the country faces re-election in October. The proprietors of the local metal café had asked her to lead a symbolic wedding ceremony in an appropriate outfit. The bride herself was dressed entirely in black, the groom wore a 'metal waistcoat' with the names of his favourite bands. And instead of a car, they arrived in a three-wheel motorbike.
At the ceremony in the café one loyal customer had dressed up as a priest. It was quite an experience for the mayor: "The most exotic thing I had experienced to date was having pets present at the wedding. But mostly, in Geel, everything is done by the book."