Nika and Misha owe their love to New York City—or rather, to the dating app scene there during the dark days of early Covid-19. While everyone else was fleeing the Big Apple, Misha packed up his life in the Bay, moved back home, and got on Hinge.

Drawn to his Russian-sounding name but not wanting to seem too eager, Nika simply “hearted” the second photo on Misha’s profile, an acrobatic display captured a few years prior at Burning Man. He reciprocated her attentions with a “Privet,” instantly winning over her mother. They made plans to meet up.

Misha's Hinge, Summer 2020

Their first date was in the West Village in September 2020. Nika wore a mask. Misha was 40 minutes late. Once he arrived, he wasted no time. Wearing an illegible expression, he fired off his favorite interview questions. “What do people most often get wrong about you?” “What are you most proud of and why?”

Nika had virtually no idea how she was doing, but at the very least, she was on the hunt for a job at the time and appreciated the practice. As he walked her to her Uber later that night, Misha asked another question. “Can I kiss you?” Nika was surprised but welcomed this turn of events.

For months, the welcome surprises continued through dozens of interview rounds as they got to know each other. Nika made Misha Zharkoye, and Misha made Nika listen to house music. They ate hoagies in Princeton, sauna’d in Williamsburg, and co-worked from Airbnbs all over the city.

It was not much time at all before each had discovered something extraordinary in the other person that they hadn't known before. With Misha, Nika felt a calm like she’d never experienced. She felt protected, understood, and a sudden, confusing urge to do things she'd never even considered, like sleeping in a tent. Misha recognized in Nika a depth of character he’d never seen. She was an endless spring of spontaneity, with strong opinions balanced by an open mind, and a proficiency in Gen-Z lingo that both perplexed and impressed him. They were starting to feel at home together.

Our first photo together, October 2020

By December, the culture fit had been established, and Misha felt Nika was ready for the final stage in his process. He announced his travel plans for the next 4 months, inviting her to join any or all of them.

Their first stop was Costa Rica, where they sat in a hammock together every night, relaxing into each other’s arms and dreaming of the big and loud family they hoped to preside over one day (coincidentally, the subject of the essay that got Misha into Stanford, his answer to “What matters most to you, and why?”).

On New Year's Eve 2021, at a party on the beach in Santa Teresa, Misha made Nika her offer. He told her he was all in. At the break of dawn on January 1, he was seen for the first time wearing a “Nika backpack,” smiling from ear to ear as he ran barefoot along a dirt road for nearly a mile with his new girlfriend’s high heels in hand.

Costa Rica, New Year's 2021

Next, they spent a month in Aspen, Colorado. Nika reconnected with her love of skiing while getting to know and love some of Misha’s closest friends. Misha got to build his cardio by carrying Nika’s skis (and occasionally Nika) to and from the resort parking lot at altitude.

Aspen, February 2021

By the time Nika was offered an *actual* job in San Francisco that spring, there was no question that they would be moving there together (or moving right back, in Misha’s case). And so they did, to a sunny Potrero Hill loft where they spent 30% of their time and paid 100% of the rent over the next couple of years.

Moving into our place in Potrero, July 2021

The other 70% of their time they spent traveling. They traveled home to the east coast often to visit their families, each time gaining love and appreciation for one another's upbringing, traditions, and family recipes. They traveled to share in the joy of their friends' weddings—to Colombia, Jamaica, Mexico, France, and Scotland, to name a few. They traveled to celebrate a couple more New Year's, their now-favorite holiday, with friends in beautiful places around the world.

Welcoming the new year with friends in Chamonix, January 2023

In March 2023, Nika and Misha’s travels came full circle when they returned to that same Aspen house with both of their families for a 10-day trip. On day 9 and 3/4, after many nights of both families dressing their best in unspoken anticipation, Nika and Misha shared a private moment outside together in their ski clothes. Misha got down on one knee and asked Nika to marry him. She said yes, and they sat nervously in their room for an hour before announcing their engagement. Once they did, the celebration was rapturous. Champagne, whiskey, black caviar, and Neli’s first cigarette in decades!

Mika and their moms on the day they got engaged, April 1, 2023

This brings us to the wedding. Throughout our lives as individuals and through our three years together, we have amassed a remarkable village of amazing people we call family. Some of these people share our last names or Soviet-Jewish roots; some even changed our diapers. Others are life-long friends who have pushed us, supported us, and made us whole.

To cater to all these audiences (and in spite of Nika’s personal aversion to planning), we’re having two wedding celebrations. The first took place on September 3, 2023, on Nika’s home turf at Waveny Park in New Canaan, CT. The second will take place this spring, in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica the weekend of March 23, 2024.

Thank you for being a part of our story. We are so excited to see you and to celebrate together!