Saturday was definitely a lovely day for a wedding! Sasha, the lawyer at our office, got married on Saturday, and we had the privilege to attend! They held the wedding at a camp about 45 minutes outside of Chisinau, so we got a ride from Ghena & Alina. Apparently traditional Moldovan wedding ceremonies are REALLY long, so Ghena & Alina decided to arrive late on purpose to not have to sit through several hours of ceremony. The wedding was supposed to start at 2 in the afternoon. We arrived at 3, and so we sat through a lovely 20 minutes and then it was over! (And from what we hear, this was a short one!) The couple are both believers, so it was moving the way they used Scripture and prayed together. Their parents also got up and prayed for them during the service, which was very special. So this was definitely not your normal Orthodox Moldovan wedding.
It was neat to get to see all of our coworkers dressed up for the occasion and outside the office. Below is a picture of all our coworkers. From left to right: Kelly, Victor, Alina, Ghena, Sasha & his bride Nelly, Roman, me, and Justin.
Another thing that was different about this wedding was that since the couple are Baptists, there was no dancing at the reception, which is apparently a big no-no among European Baptists. So instead, there was a 4-hour long feast. And I mean a feast! Upon walking into the reception room, the tables were already loaded full to bursting with all sorts of delicacies - meat & cheeses, pickled vegetables, fried chicken, crab cakes, fish, fresh vegetables, fruits, bread, etc. So we ate and enjoyed ourselves. The only problem is that I didn't realize that was just the first course! I filled up on those thing, and THEN they brought out big plates of stuffed pork and potatoes! So we managed to get down some of that, and THEN they brought out plates of cakes and pastries! And THEN they brought out ice cream! It was unbelievable. Even more unbelievable is that we managed to eat it all. :)
In between these courses, there would be breaks - you could go out and wander around the camp, which was lovely with trees and pretty scenery. There were also some musicians playing who kept us entertained. It was all in Russian, but Justin said they were singing all Christian love songs, which seemed appropriate to me. Occasionally someone would go to the microphone and say a few words to the bride and groom, who would stand up to hear what they had to say and acknowledge their kindness. Several children got up and quoted poetry.
It was definitely a fun evening and we at least got a glimpse into Moldovan Christian culture if not Moldovan tradition. Congratulations to Sasha and Nelly!
It was neat to get to see all of our coworkers dressed up for the occasion and outside the office. Below is a picture of all our coworkers. From left to right: Kelly, Victor, Alina, Ghena, Sasha & his bride Nelly, Roman, me, and Justin.
Another thing that was different about this wedding was that since the couple are Baptists, there was no dancing at the reception, which is apparently a big no-no among European Baptists. So instead, there was a 4-hour long feast. And I mean a feast! Upon walking into the reception room, the tables were already loaded full to bursting with all sorts of delicacies - meat & cheeses, pickled vegetables, fried chicken, crab cakes, fish, fresh vegetables, fruits, bread, etc. So we ate and enjoyed ourselves. The only problem is that I didn't realize that was just the first course! I filled up on those thing, and THEN they brought out big plates of stuffed pork and potatoes! So we managed to get down some of that, and THEN they brought out plates of cakes and pastries! And THEN they brought out ice cream! It was unbelievable. Even more unbelievable is that we managed to eat it all. :)
In between these courses, there would be breaks - you could go out and wander around the camp, which was lovely with trees and pretty scenery. There were also some musicians playing who kept us entertained. It was all in Russian, but Justin said they were singing all Christian love songs, which seemed appropriate to me. Occasionally someone would go to the microphone and say a few words to the bride and groom, who would stand up to hear what they had to say and acknowledge their kindness. Several children got up and quoted poetry.
It was definitely a fun evening and we at least got a glimpse into Moldovan Christian culture if not Moldovan tradition. Congratulations to Sasha and Nelly!
1 comment:
How incredibly COOL!! I loved this post, guys!
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