Greek actress Maria Solomou has revealed black-and-white photographs from a secret symbolic wedding ceremony she held on the island of Santorini when she was 19 years old.
The actress brought the nostalgic images from her youth to light to share the story of that summer with her partner at the time, Panos, after keeping the private event hidden for decades.
Describing the sequence of pictures, Solomou began the series by noting that the first photograph showed her once upon a time, before introducing Panos in the following image and confirming that they were together in Santorini. Explaining their rationale at age 19, she stated that every self-respecting 19-year-old makes bold choices, which led the pair to decide to get married.
The subsequent snapshots captured the couple outside a small island chapel, where they exchanged vows and cut a celebratory wedding cake together. Solomou clarified that the ceremony carried no official or legal status and was conducted entirely by themselves without licenses or permits, but emphasized that the symbolic gesture felt completely real to both of them.
Island setting and background
Santorini, officially known as Thira, is a volcanic island in the southern Aegean Sea in Greece, world-famous for its dramatic caldera views, whitewashed Cycladic buildings, and picturesque hilltop chapels. The island is widely celebrated as one of the top European destinations for romantic travel, weddings, and summer holidays.
Solomou is a prominent Greek theater, television, and film actress who has enjoyed a long career in Greek entertainment, appearing in numerous popular television series, feature films, and stage productions over several decades.
Reflecting on the event more than 30 years later, the actress concluded her retrospective by looking back across the temporal distance since that summer. She added that it felt as though she and Panos somehow knew even then that the moment would remain significant to them more than three decades after it took place.
