So I’ve finally gotten around to part 2 of the wedding, although I really don’t have the energy to pace it quite like part 1. After visiting the groom’s parent’s house, we returned to the wedding convoy and headed back to the hotel. Upon arrival we went straight up to the main banquet hall where the main ceremony was to be held.
At the front of the room was a stage with a big projector screen, and some bits and bobs (check out the photos here to see more), from which led a glass catwalk of 7-10 metres illuminated with blue lighting. The rest of the room was lit by different coloured spotlights, and at the end of the catwalk was a tent. From behind the tent started the dining tables, fitting 100 or so guests, the most senior family members and business associates – its is very common in Asian weddings for the couple’s father’s to invite colleagues and clients to their children’s big day.
The ceremony itself was quite moving, and followed thus: bride and father entered the room, walking down the catwalk to the tent in the middle of the room. A young girl dressed as an angel walked the aisle with a candle, which was used by the bride to light an incense burner. The groom then entered from the back of the room, quite casually strolling in and waving at the guests as if on the red carpet, to receive the bride in the tent from the father. Lights dimmed, big poppers and sprinklers at the ready in addition to a Chinese song, and the couple moved down the catwalk to the stage.
Queue a Master of Ceremony to present the ceremony (which lasted about 10 minutes), followed by a touching short-film, which I will try and post online, and some bowing the parents, who assembled on stage – then down to dinner. The host was a local celebrity, who informed all of us at the beginning that he had won a local radio competition, and event plugged the radio station itself. Talk about being paid to advertise!!!
At one point the couple poured Chinese wine into a stack of glasses, the sort of fancy thing you see at hotel parties in the West, before picking up a glass each, standing face to face, thrusting the glass behind each other’s backs and attempting to drink from the glass. I mention this because this was the closest we got at any stage to a kiss from the couple for the whole day, even weekend. Kissing and public affection is not cared for much in China, but I will no doubt cover this more fully another time.
Most of the other guests were in the second banquet hall downstairs, and they had a video-link set up on a giant screen to monitor proceedings. For the dinner, each main family unit sat separately, with a third room for special friends.
Pity the poor bride and groom, who had to share a drink and a smoke with each guest – as is custom in China; the bride and groom usually have helpers to share this responsibility – but on this occasion they used the excuse of having ‘VIP’ guests from England (myself and a fellow Brit, Tony) which meant that they toasted each table and not individual. And it worked – no complaints from the guests.
The whole shebang ended at around 2.30pm, after which most guests departed. But for the closest, we embarked on a photo-shoot around the city before going to a local restaurant for a final dinner, during which each uncle came over to the table to toast the happy couple with Chinese rice wine.
After dinner the bride and groom were obliged to spend the night with the groom’s family, a typical power-play move by the groom’s mother to show possession of the bride after the wedding. We finally hit the sack after 1am.
