Love: DANIELLE MEISTER & MATTHEW COHEN

The poolside happy hour in Acapulco was in full swing when Matthew went for a cocktail.

On the other side of the water sat a beautiful woman. "She had bright eyes, and a beautiful smile," he said.

She was no stranger.

It was spring break in 2007, and Matthew and Danielle had been part of the same friend group almost since she arrived at George Washington University the previous fall.

"I started talking to the girls I knew [better], with the full intent of making my way to talk to Danielle," said Matthew, who grew up in Gladwyne and was a junior.

Danielle, of New York City, first met Matthew when he was running for the university's student senate, and deduced that he shared her passion for politics.

She was right.

They had an intellectually stimulating discussion about their views of the world.

"Plus, I find him incredibly handsome," Danielle said. "I don't think that hurt."

Matthew sent Danielle flowers at her parents' home after break, and picked her up at the train station when she returned to school.

They had dinner and closed the restaurant.

These two love to talk - even when they disagree.

Matthew loves the Eagles. Danielle and her family are Giants-obsessed. Matt is conservative. Danielle is fiscally conservative but socially liberal.

Matthew says he's belief-driven, but he doesn't believe his beliefs are the only good ones.

"Sometimes it is just as much fun to debate with someone as it is to watch a movie," said Danielle.

Danielle spent their first summer doing humanitarian work in Ecuador. On weekends, she traveled two hours to the closest city so she could call Matthew or e-mail him from an Internet cafe.

Matthew graduated in 2008. He volunteered for Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign, then returned to George Washington on a fellowship, in which he worked as a projects/strategic initiatives coordinator while earning his master's degree in business administration.

During her senior year and a little beyond, Danielle freelanced for the British Broadcasting Company. After graduation, she worked for a crisis-management firm in Washington.

In 2011, the couple moved to New York's Chelsea neighborhood.

Danielle, now 24, specializes in corporate reputation communications at Edelman in New York.

Matthew, now 27, worked for an investment bank, but then contacts from his McCain days asked him to join Gov. Mitt Romney's 2012 campaign. As a paid consultant, he helped set up events and reach out to media across the country.

He is now an investment banker with Delancey Street Partners in West Conshohocken.

Matthew asked close friend Jeffrey Kellmer, a jeweler, for a little help.

Early one day in March 2012, the couple woke at Danielle's family's vacation home in the Berkshires for a sunrise hot-air balloon ride.

The balloon's basket was far too cramped for a romantic proposal, Matthew decided.

After landing, he heard Danielle tell the pilot: "My dream was always to get engaged on or near a hot-air balloon."

Matthew chuckled to himself. "I knew in my heart it wouldn't matter if it was on, after or before the hot-air balloon ride."

Back at the lake house, Matthew suggested a walk in the woods. Danielle needed coffee, but he was persistent.

They walked to the spot where they hope to build their own cottage. Matthew professed his love and knelt. Danielle, suddenly wide awake even without caffeine, said yes.

The couple hosted four days of events for their 200 guests, including a golf tournament, and a welcome dinner at Matthew's grandparents' country club that featured a cigar roller, a steel drum band, and a scotch and bourbon tasting.

Danielle made her garter from her mother Jeanne's veil.

During their traditional Jewish ceremony, the couple were wrapped in the tallis of Matthew's late grandfather Ellis, a real estate investor and former co-owner of Dee's Appliances who lived in Washington Square. Matthew also wears Ellis' wedding band.

Half of Danielle's family is from Italy. Her late grandfather Salvatore made wine, and her father, Robert, collects it. He gave the couple three bottles, including one identical to what he and Jeanne drank when they wed. Guests signed the bottles, which the couple will drink on their first, 5th and 10th anniversaries.

The couple was dancing on stage with the band, the rock-concert style lighting Matthew chose flashing. "Someone whispered in my ear, 'Look at what's going on,' " Danielle remembered. "Every single person who has really touched my life was in that room. And so was the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with."

Matthew looked at his new wife and had a similar experience. "Here I am with the love of my life, and we just got married, and all our family and friends are here," he thought. "It just doesn't get any better."

A bargain: The welcome dinner at Frenchman's Creek club. The family has been members for 25 years, and the club threw in many freebies.

The splurge: Sunday morning after the wedding, the couple and most guests were having brunch on the ocean terrace, when an airplane flew past trailing a banner: "Good morning, Mrs. Cohen. Love, your husband Matt."

A trip to Thailand is planned later this year.

Officiant

Rabbi Benjamin Zeidman, Congregation Emanu-El,

New York

Venue

The Breakers Hotel,

Palm Beach, Fla.

Food

The Breakers

Music

The Powerhouse Group,

Naples, Fla.

Photography

Ambrosio Photography, Miami

Videography

Ruben Senderey Video Production, Miami

Flowers

The Special Event Resource & Design Group, Palm Beach, Fla.

Dress

Vera Wang

Invitations

The Stationery and Invitation Shop, Gladwyne

Planner:

Cheryl Beitler and Dale Flam

of the Zanadu Group,

Hollywood, Fla.