4 June 2010
Sarah’s China Update emails
Greetings all,
Hope this note finds you all well! It's sunny and warm (borderline hot) here in Shenyang...it seems like it went from Winter to Summer almost over night. People told us that Spring didn't last long...and they were right! The town is putting out a lot of petunias, salvias and marigolds and most of the time, they look pretty good!
Last weekend, Rod and I were invited to a wedding for one of my colleagues at Michelin, so of course we went! A warning up front to the men on this list...this could really be a "chick flick" note...so if you're not really interested in weddings...you might want to stop here. I will say that a Chinese wedding is different than a Western one...so go ahead...get in touch with your feminine side and read on!
The wedding was at a hotel ballroom and the invitation said to be there at 9:30am, so like the punctual Americans we are, we were there! We were shown the way to the ballroom and were seated at the front table. The room was set up with a large aisle down the center with a table and flower arch in the back of the room and a small stage in the front of the room. People were dressed very casually and there was lots of talking, visiting, eating, smoking, drinking etc going on for about an hour. At the same time the bride and groom showed up, there was a master of ceremonies all decked out on a pink sequined coat, giving the play by play at about 500db! The bride and groom entered together in the back of the room and poured champagne for each other, then the walked down the aisle with rose petals being showered upon them. There was a large inflatable ball type thing they entered and said what I guess was their vows (commented all along by the MC...still at 500db!). This ball thing also served as a projection screen for the slideshow of photos during their time together as a couple. Then, they came out and the ball deflated and they were introduced to the crowd (to the tune of Star wars!) . After the vows, the parents of the bride and groom came up and each made a small speech and drank some wine together. Then, the employer supervisor of the bride and groom each went to the stage to give a speech. In our bride's case, it was a French man who tried his best to read a note he had written, and had translated into Chinese...what an order! Anyway, most importantly, she was a beautiful bride and she and her new husband walked down the aisle smiling and waving out the back of the room. Then the food came out..and kept coming! There were so many plates of food, they just stacked them on top of each other, leaving a big heaping pile in the center of the table..if you really liked what was brought out first...too bad, it was buried! The bride and groom re-entered with a new set of clothes (she had a dark pink sequined dress now) and they starting making the rounds to the tables. It is customary for the guests to present a gift of money in a red envelope (red is good luck) to the bride, who immediately gives it to her assistant who stashes it away in a big purse! It is also customary to be offered (and smoke) a cigarette and a glass of beer..since neither Rodney nor I smoke or drink, we had to politely bow out of that custom...believe me, there was enough smoke in the room to go around with everyone lighting up! The last part of the meal was brought out and it was a special dish made of mashed potatoes with some type of food coloring, made to look like a Phoenix bird and a Dragon, both are for good luck (I think). The bride had this special dish put at our table. I felt bad because we were all so full that we could barely move, much less eat more! After we ate, we said our goodbyes, but from what I understand, the bride and groom had been doing something with the wedding since about 4:00am and would go on well into the evening. I'm tired just writing about it! Below are some
pictures.
This is the wedding aisle in the hotel as some of the guests arrived.
The aisle before most of the guests arrived. The big purple screen in the front of the room is the inflatable ball/projection screen. Notice that there are several smokers!
This is the wedding party with their parents.
Otherwise, I've been working a lot this week, trying to get ready for my project milestone presentations, so I have had no time this week to see anything else...including my dear husband. I hope to make up for lost time while we're in Shanghai next week...together! :-) I've still gotta work, and on Friday, I'll be going to the World Expo (from what I understand, like the World's fair...and it's highlighting China..imagine that!) Rod and I will stay Saturday for a day together in Shanghai and discover it a little more together. So, I'll write about that next week.
Keep those emails coming!!
Sarah
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