2011.06.21: June 21, 2011: Nepal RPCV Courtney Mitchell weds Sarah Welton in Kathmandu in Asia's First Legal Same-Sex Marriage
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2011.01.09: January 9, 2011: Nepal RPCV Courtney Mitchell returned to Kathmandu with her girlfriend, Sarah Welton, for a Hindu-inspired wedding and honeymoon as Nepal works to establish itself as the world's newest gay tourism destination :
2011.06.21: June 21, 2011: Nepal RPCV Courtney Mitchell weds Sarah Welton in Kathmandu in Asia's First Legal Same-Sex Marriage
Nepal RPCV Courtney Mitchell weds Sarah Welton in Kathmandu in Asia's First Legal Same-Sex Marriage
They exchanged vows in Kathamdu's Dakshinkali temple yesterday (Monday) in Nepal under the delighted gaze of Sunil Babu Pant, the country's one and only out and proud gay legislator.
Courtney Mitchell had originally been a Peace Corps volunteer before working for the UN's World Food Programme in the tiny Himalayan state where she lived for six years. "I always thought I would return to Nepal, however I had never thought it this way" she told The Times of India.
Nepal RPCV Courtney Mitchell weds Sarah Welton in Kathmandu in Asia's First Legal Same-Sex Marriage
Asia's first same-sex wedding
June 21, 2011
By Mark Watson
Caption: Courtney Mitchell, a college professor, right, offers a wedding ring to Sarah Welton, a lawyer, during their wedding ceremony at a Hindu temple in Katmandu, Nepal, Monday, June 20, 2011. The couple from Denver, Colorado, married in a Hindu Nepalese tradition in the first public lesbian wedding in the Himalayan nation that recently began recognizing gay rights and working to draft laws to end sexual discrimination. (AP | Binod Joshi)
Whilst New Yorkers are wringing their hands over same-sex marriage, American psychologist Courtney Mitchell married her fellow countrywoman Sarah Welton and made history by being the first lesbian couple to tie the knot in Asia.
They exchanged vows in Kathamdu's Dakshinkali temple yesterday (Monday) in Nepal under the delighted gaze of Sunil Babu Pant, the country's one and only out and proud gay legislator.
Courtney Mitchell had originally been a Peace Corps volunteer before working for the UN's World Food Programme in the tiny Himalayan state where she lived for six years. "I always thought I would return to Nepal, however I had never thought it this way" she told The Times of India.
Although this Hindu kingdom is renowned for its conservatism, their nuptials generated a lot of goodwill and interest amongst the locals and they were joined in matrimony by 25-year-old Brahmin priest Upendra Lamicchane.
Pant is promoting Nepal though his Pink Mountain Travles and Tours as an adventurous and exciting destination for LGBT travellers, and offers wedding packages as well. Last year he and the Blue Diamond Society – the gay rights organisation which he founded – organised the wedding of Brit Sanjay Shah and his Indian boyfriend.
Although this momentous same-sex wedding is not recognised in their home state of Colorado, Courtney and Sarah are hoping that one day it will be.
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: June, 2011; Peace Corps Nepal; Directory of Nepal RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Nepal RPCVs; Marriage; Gay Issues
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Story Source: The Gaily Mail
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Nepal; Marriage; Gay Issues
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