You May Now Kiss the Bride

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In 2009, the swine flu spread rapidly and globally, hitting Mexico particularly severely. Its spread, however viral, could not inhibit the power of love. As Florentino Ariza’s father says in Gabriel Garcia Marquez’ landmark novel, Love in the Time of Cholera, “the only regret I will have in dying is if it is not for love.” Although not quite as morbid as Garcia Marquez’s musing, the couples in the following gallery seem to pay tribute to it, focusing more on their passion for one another than on the ravaging effects of the H1N1 virus.

Here, a young couple from the Ukrainian city of Lviv express their love as they exit the courthouse where they were just married. The lovers seem unperturbed as they kiss through the grainy texture of medical flu masks.

Keeping the Flu at Bay with Notes of Love

In Mexico City’s Zocalo Square, two lovers kiss as they ward off the flu, status quo, and loneliness. They bring light to the industrial setting around them and prove that love can survive even in the bleakest of times.

Forget Everything Else

With their flu masks pulled tautly around their faces, this couple standing in the heart of Mexico City, on Gante Street, seems intent to land their kiss as if the masks, and the cameras, aren’t there.

Fleeing From the Flu

A couple in flu masks lean on one another as they head to their flight in the International Airport of Mexico City. Despite their obstructive face masks, the two seem content, huddling together for comfort, perhaps both literally and figuratively.

Mazel Tov, Flu Bride and Groom!

Both diagnosed with the swine flu just 48 hours before their wedding ceremony, this Illinois bride and groom decided the show must go on. Fearing for their guests, Ilana Jackson and Jeremy Fierstien chose not to walk down the aisle and risk infecting their loved ones. Instead, they walked around the assembled guests, forcing Ilana to forgo the traditional bridal moment.

Salaam Alaikum, Flu

Here, a Muslim man protected by a flu mask, and his wife, protected by a burka, walk by the Grand Mosque in Mecca. The outbreak of swine flu in the Middle East added further discomfort to a time when many Muslims were already uncomfortable enough, fasting for the month-long holiday of Ramadan.

Pray for Love and Health

This Mexican couple kneels in devotion at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Mexico City, participating in a procession to pray for the health of the nation's populace. Although they have the right idea, the positioning of the man and woman's masks seem a bit ill-advised. Perhaps they're too involved in praying for one another's health to remember the importance of their own.

Undercover Flu Lovers

A man and woman caught amid a group of unmasked people at Insurgentes Square in Mexico City share in a moment of intimacy. The woman places her hands protectively over her boyfriend's leg as if to reassure him that everything will be alright.

'We're Just Tourists Here'

This woman gently adjusts her partner's flu mask upon arrival at Cancun airport, ensuring that it is fastened safely and correctly. The man watches intently, locking eyes with her in a bespectacled and loving interchange.

Love Can Wait

At Pino Suarez Station in Mexico City, this couple waits anxiously for the subway to arrive. The pair seems almost anchored to each other, sharing in worry and love as they both work to fight off the flu.

Don't Let Me Go

On April 30, 2009, the Mexican government ordered that non-essential government employees stay home in order to stop the deadly spread of the flu. Here, in a tender moment caught among an environment of tense political activism, a girl finds support and relief on her boyfriend's strong shoulder.

Love is in the Air

This couple, kissing al fresco in bright blue surgical masks, look at one with the sky behind them. The two wait patiently in line for medical treatment at a prevention and detection medical mobile service in Mexico City. It seems the wait time isn't too much of a problem for this passionate duo.