weddings

In the last two months I've been to three weddings. For those who want to know, yes, people get wasted at Khmer weddings just like they do at American ones. Except that women don't drink alcohol here, or at least not much. That's one part of the culture that female volunteers have to contend with. But gender roles in Cambodia are a whole 'nother topic. Let's get to the weddings!!

At one of the weddings, the groom was a fellow teacher at my school, and he was kind enough to invite me to both days of the wedding. Day 1: the ceremony. Day 2: the reception.

Day 1: The ceremony began early-ish, around 730am. And it started with a wedding march. Here, all the guests were given a plate of food, mostly fruit, but a few plates of crackers, bread, and even cans of beer. Then, everyone walked about 200 meters to a gathering point where we found our partner (the other person whose plate had the same fruit or whatever). I had oranges. In a two-person column led by the groom, the whole party then marched up the road with their offerings. And, yes, I was the tallest person in the procession. Because I'm a giant. At the house, the ceremony was elaborate and I can't possibly explain it all. A boy and a girl fed each other fruit (very cute), there was some singing, then the parents of the couple blessed them. And then there was breakfast. At around 1pm there was another ceremony, the hair-cutting ritual. I have to find out more about the symbolism here, but most people at the wedding got to fake-cut the hair of both the bride and groom. There was a lot of ritual and ceremony involved, which I mostly didn't understand. Finally, about 3pm, the bride, groom, and others took an excursion to a wat in a nearby town.

Day 2: This is the reception. It's a giant feast, with beer and food flowing out your ears. There's music, and dancing. The women dress up and it's about the only time you'll ever see bare shoulders and backless shirts. I also think, that in a period of about 3 hours, I saw the groom in at least four different outfits. Basically, wedding parties are great. I can't afford to go to too many, though, because the guests give money to the couple....maybe $8-10. And that adds up quickly on a PCV's salary.