Last Monday was Sports Day and the kids had a great time. It is so neat to watch the older students’ team up with the younger students. The spirit of cooperation and friendly competition was very high. The “Sponge Race” was a big hit. In our competitions, the white teams (which I urged on throughout the day) defeated Pat’s blue teams in 7 of the 9 competitions. The phrases “Run like the wind” and” Squeeze like a python” could be heard throughout the campus.
Friday evening we attended our first wedding here in Egypt. It was definitely unlike any we have ever attended. It was held on the gardens of Montazah in the former summer palace of King Farouk (which has been converted into a hotel). The wedding was to start “promptly” at 5:00 PM but in the true Egyptian way, it didn’t begin until 6:30. The wedding began with a procession from the palace to the ballroom where the reception was held. There are no vows or ceremony was we think in the west. The couple walked down a carpeted path between the two buildings as friends and family tossed rose pedals in the air. They would pause at various places for photos with family and friends. The groom was dressed in a traditional tux while the bride had a beautiful white wedding gown and veil. As a Muslim, she is scarved and it is likely her groom will see her without the scarf for the first time after they are married.
Once inside the ballroom, the couple took their place on a white bench seat and they and all the guests were presented with wine glasses filled with various juices (no alcohol can be served). The couple was toasted and then they exchanged the wedding rings to signify their marriage. Following the ring exchange, they had a special dance and then the bride danced with her father. Following this dance, a few couples danced along with the bride and groom extending their congratulations. Not many of us danced as this is not often done at Muslim weddings. Although both the bride and groom are Egyptian, they were raised much of their early life in the States.
At most weddings in the states, there is a reception line in which the guests pass by the bride and groom, extending their congratulations. In this wedding, the bride and groom along with the parents went to each table and “mingled” with the guests, thanking them for coming. All throughout the ceremony, music was played, video and still photographers were taping and taking photos and a boom camera was used to show the action and a large projection screen.
Group dancing took place next. This consisted of the bride and groom surrounded by guests, dancing to all types of music. Around 8:00 pm the festivities were put on hold as the call to prayer took place and several guests along with the bridal party and family members took part in the prayers in a different area of the palace grounds. The next activity for the evening was a PowerPoint slide show of the bride, the groom and their courtship.
As this finished, the lights were dimmed and a beautiful 5-tier wedding cake was brought out and placed in front of the bridal couple. Then the room was darkened and in marched 4 men in traditional military costumes each holding a flaming brass rod (the same size as a sword) and in the middle was a 5th man carrying a large brass sword – this was handed to the bride for the cutting of the cake. With the traditional eating of the cake came the exchange of the wedding bands.
Following the exchange of the bands, dinner was served buffet-style. The food was a mixture of western and Egyptian. Needless to say the concept of a serving line fell by the wayside and as typically happens here, people just moved up to the tables, disregarding any sense of “line order.” When we first got in line, we were among the first third but by the time we actually started to go through the line, we were in the last third. But it really didn’t matter as there was more than enough food and it was excellent.
After eating, a “Gypsy” Band began to play. By that time, it was nearly 10:00 pm and we decided it was time to head out. We had a great time and were happy to be invited to this celebration.
Today, our daughter Angelia and our oldest grandson Nick made the long journey from Iowa to visit us here in Egypt. It was so neat to see them come through the terminal. It was a long flight. They left Des Moines at 5:30 AM Sunday morning and arrived in Cairo at 10:30 AM Monday morning with stops in Atlanta and New York. They will be here with us until the 21st of June. We are going to have a wonderful time!
