Where in the World Answers :D

And now, the answer to my Where in the World! What you have all been waiting for! Well, drumroll... it was The Great Barrier Reef in Austrailia like most of you guessed. Good job you guys! Hopefully I'll be picked again to give you guys an even HARDER one! Well hasta luego until the next post!

Wedding Time!

Well hello again, followers! In this blog post, you will learn about a special wedding and the culture within it. Weddings are a time when two people have a marriage ceremony and want to spend their whole lives together. In this particular post I would like to tell you about a particular wedding that was back in 1987 which is my parents’ wedding. I compiled a list of 11 questions and I interviewed my mom to get a clearer picture of what it was like. Also, I looked at their photo album to help me publish this. I asked and she answered questions like “where were you during your reception?” and “how did you find your dress?”.                                                                                            

First, before I get into all the details I would like to give you a general description of the wedding. My parents, Monique and Alan, were married on March 1, 1987, 25 years ago. My mom said that they knew each other for about a year before they were wed. They invited about 300 people to their wedding which included friends, family, and colleagues. Since my parents are both Jewish they had a Jewish wedding. In the photo album, you could see my dad wore a kippah (a little Jewish hat covering the head that men only wear) during the ceremony. They were married under the famous hoopah/chuppah which is a wedding canopy that people marry under.  My parents were married in the Sheraton hotel in Lima, Peru. That is where my mom is from and where my dad was working at the time. The Sheraton room had a big wood dance floor in the middle surrounded by round tables where the guests sat at. The ceremony also took place in the hotel instead of a synagogue.  The whole wedding was indoors.                                                     

And now for what you have been waiting for- the rich, juicy details! As in most weddings that you might be familiar with, my mom did wear a white dress and my dad wore a typical tuxedo and bow tie. The dress had a wavy neckline and a full, tool skirt with lace peeking through on the bottom and ends of the sleeves. She wore a long thin veil and the same material was on the dress before the neckline so the dress wasn’t strapless. This was put because whenever there is religious gathering, you have to have your shoulders covered.  My mom did say that in all the shops in Lima, she couldn’t find a wedding dress she liked. A solution to that was she went to a local seamstress and had her dress custom made. I personally really liked the dress. I think it looks very elegant and it fits her figure well.                                                                                       

Next, my granny (My dad’s mom) escorted the groom down the aisle and my grandfather (mom’s dad) did the same for the bride.  Instead of a grown-up maid of honor, in Peruvian weddings they are kids doing similar tasks to flower girls and ring bearers so my parents had 4 or 5 kids in the ceremony. The little girls wore white dresses like the bride’s, but the sleeves were larger, and it had a turtle-neck kind of a collar. They also held white bouquets like my mom.  For decorations, there were also bouquets on each of the tables but many white and red roses instead of what they were holding. The table bouquets really made the tables illuminate and add a sense of sophistication. My parents hired a live mariachi band to perform at the wedding. No just kidding. They hired a regular live band. Since they hired a live band, the guests had the opportunity to dance on the dance floor if they wanted. My parents did definitely dance.  They ordered a three teared white cake with marzipan flowers and ribbons. It looked like it would have tasted delectable. I wish they would have saved me some! But it probably would taste terrible 30+ years later! Also, my mom and grandpa did the traditional father daughter dance.  Some traditions they had in the wedding were like I said before, the groom’s mother and bride’s father walked them down the aisle. Also like I mentioned as well, this was a Jewish wedding. The bride and groom were lifted in chairs while they sang the horah. You might have seen this in many bar and bat mitzvahs when they do this to the girl/boy and sing Havvah Nagilah(a Jewish song). Also, my mom said they have a Peruvian tradition to put many ends of ribbon in a cake and one with a ring on it. The single person who gets the ring is the next one to be wed, supposedly. They also had my mom throw the bouquet to all the single ladies to catch and the same is supposed that lucky lady. My mom also had to take off her garter and throw it behind her for someone to catch and put on. Lastly, the wedding was a long one. It lasted from 8:30 pm to 3:00 am at the hotel!                                                                                                        

When I interviewed my mother she remembered it vividly, it seemed like it really meant a lot, and she had a very good time. I totally understand too because this was a very memorable mile stone in my parent’s life. I hope she felt wonderful during the wedding because it was her special day with family and friends. One thing she might’ve of changed was invite less people. My dad invited his whole office so she didn’t know some people from that group.                                          

 From the pictures and the interview, it seemed like a fairytale wedding. The decorations, attire, and guests were phenomenal. The cake, flowers, and the food looked elegant and the whole wedding just looked… polished. If I ever get married, I think my dress would be different; some of the décor, and the Jewish traditions might change if the groom isn’t Jewish. If he is, I think I would keep them in because Judaism is a big part of my life. I also really like the ribbon cake idea and same with the horah. I would also like to be wed in a nicer hotel. The hotel in the pictures looked mediocre. Lastly, I think I want a grown- up maid of honor, a best friend. I think it would make the planning easier and the whole experience a lot more fun! Well thanks for reading! I hope you learned more about my parents wedding and blogs are coming up. Adios!

These are my parents on their wedding day. Behind them is the hoopah which is four poles with flowers and a talla on it. You are suppost to be married underneath it with two candles and a glass of wine.