A Wedding

12.27.2008

I'm sure a cultural anthropologist would say that the only way to get to know a culture is by living like the people on a daily basis.

I agree *collective sigh of relief*. I would also add (from my quite limited experience) that you get a glimpse of the best of a culture in how it celebrates a wedding.

Here is a glimpse into a wedding to which we were privileged to be invited. Not our first wedding here, but our first with our girls (which turned out to be a treat). We also had recently landed guests from Canada with us (the hospitality here knows no limits) and it was amazing to try to look at all of this through their fresh eyes.


Musicians to the Bride's house.

The groom and his family actually go to the bride's home to collect her and take her to the wedding palace. While at her home there is dancing, blessing, and the ubiquitous tea.

Ceremony and Reception are combined at a place called a Wedding Palace.

Ring-bearers and Flower girls are non-existent here. However, the bride and groom said they wanted a Western flavor to their wedding and asked about our traditions. They ended up asking our girls to carry the rings down the aisle. They gave us the rings attached to the pillow about an hour before the time came to walk down the aisle. Needless to say, I was a little bit nervous with the responsibility! However, all came out beautifully and the girls were amazing!

Everybody troops up to the stage and gets their pictures taken with the Happy Couple.

Most brides here don't smile because they aren't supposed to be happy to leave their own families. Thankfully, this bride appeared really joyful...good for her! Random point: Annie, Sophie and I all had to borrow clothes to wear for this event and I didn't wear my glasses all night. Our appearances reflected on our respect and joy. Interesting?

An insane amount of food.

The food was waiting for us when we arrived and continued pouring out all evening long.

An insane amount of noise.

This was pretty hard for the girls to get used to. At one point Sophie asked for a pen and began journalling on a napkin (see below) about the noise level. I guess it was unforgettable. They soon got used to it...scary thought. Someone said to me that they think that most people have hearing loss here because of all the weddings they attend and the noise level...and I thought the people yelling at each other out my window were angry. Maybe they just needed hearing aides.



Dancing Queen.

The bride really was quite regal appearing, from her dress to her expression to the grace with which she moved. Annie and Sophie danced away the evening with little inhibition, which was enjoyed by all. Above, Annie joins a group of women in dancing circles around the bride. Annie's new dream? To be a bride, of course!


A Flaming Cake, Of Course!

I don't really have any explanation for this, but it was timed impeccably. We were just starting to get dozy from all the food consumption when the lights dimmed and out came a beautifully clad young woman bearing, of all things, a flaming cake. There was also a male dancer with her and together they danced and held this flaming object...and we lived to tell the tale. After that, we had little difficulty staying awake!


Well documented.

OK, one camera man would be normal. Three? Unbelievable. They roamed the room capturing every moment of the wedding (they even ride to the wedding in front of the car carrying the bride and groom...they are often in station wagons with the backs flipped up so they can get an unobstructed view of the wedding journey). I liked they way this guy balanced the camera on his head for a better view. There were also about 5 large flat screen TVs mounted on the walls with live feed. We, as novelty foreigners, made the screen almost as much as the bride and groom!


Indoor Fireworks?

I'm not sure about the safety of this, either. Regardless, it was pretty stunning!

An Unforgettable Evening.

I think this picture of Sophie is one of my favorites. Strange but true. Why? I guess because I had underestimated these girls of mine. I thought they would be a little fussy and grumpy and overly shy. They surprised me. They danced. They ate (OK, mostly bread, but that's typical!). They made friends and spoke to strangers. They were ALL THERE.

I blinked my eyes and they grew up on me.