Clinton wedding town abuzz

2010-07-29 13:41

Rhinebeck, New York - Never mind that the details about Chelsea Clinton's wedding are being guarded like state secrets. The postcard-pretty upstate town of Rhinebeck is ready for its close-up.

Clinton and her parents, former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, have not even confirmed that her wedding is being held in Rhinebeck. Still, signs congratulating her hang in shop windows, residents are talking to TV crews and officials are bracing for crowds.

Clinton, 30, will wed investment banker Marc Mezvinsky on Saturday, and this little Hudson Valley town of upscale boutiques and pricey homes north of New York City is expecting an influx of celebrity guests, reporters and onlookers.

It's all but certain that the couple will wed on Saturday evening at Astor Courts, a secluded estate along the Hudson River built as a Beaux Arts style playground for John Jacob Astor IV more than a century ago.

The spot is a little more than an hour north of Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton's home in suburban Chappaqua and about 145km north of New York City.

The Clintons - and the town - have been silent when it comes to wedding details. The cone of silence appears also to cover contractors, who are reluctant to talk about their dealings with the Clintons.

The agent at the front desk of the Beekman Arms, which reportedly will put up wedding guests, politely said on Wednesday that he could not comment on anything related to the weekend. The story was the same at nearby Clinton Vineyards - unrelated to the former president - which has in the past bottled special "Victory White" wines for the Clintons during their political campaigns.

Dancing Queen

The silence has hardly stopped the media. The gossip website TMZ reported that the couple's wedding playlist includes Abba's Dancing Queen. Wedding planners not involved in the ceremony have quoted cost estimates as high as $5m. Two Norwegian journalists were arrested last week for trespassing at Astor Courts.

On Wednesday, locals shared the sidewalks with camera crews conducting interviews. People were generally supportive, whether it was merchants expecting a boost in business or residents caught up in the buzz.

A number of shops posted signs like "Congratulations Marc and Chelsea." One shop posted pictures of the Clintons, and a sign on a cosmetics store read: "Oprah! Please make my soap one of your favourite things." (Winfrey was reportedly invited.)

The official secrecy didn't appear to bother residents too much, mostly because few doubted the wedding was going to happen here. A couple of people said they felt bad that Chelsea went through tumultuous times when her father was president, and said they didn't begrudge the family a little privacy now.

The reaction wasn't totally positive. Some worry about traffic jams; others wonder why the details are being kept secret so close to the wedding. One man waiting to get his hair cut at a barber pointed disapprovingly to a tabloid headline on Wednesday referring to residents as "local yokels."

- AP

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