This week has allowed me the opportunity to experience two festive events, Indonesian style.
Tuesday was Elis’ birthday and we celebrated by taking her and her family out to dinner at Gadjah Wong. When our meals arrived we sang Happy Birthday to Elis in English then enjoyed our wonderfully prepared meals. After dinner we turned our attention to the live band, playing a mix of country folk songs, many of them in English. Much to everyone’s surprise, Ingrid decided to sing along with the band for 2 songs! Near the end of out dinner the Gadjah Wong staff presented Elis with a beautiful fruit platter, decorated with simple flowers and lit up with candles. She received a second Happy Birthday song, this time in Indonesian. Overall, it was a lovely evening with friends, food, and birthday cheer!
On Wednesday I traveled with Chelsea and Anastasia up to the village of Kaliurang for Tommy’s wedding. Tommy is an ICRS student and he invited everyone from the ICRS to celebrate in his wedding. Tommy and his new bride Emy are Christians so the wedding paralleled a typical Christian wedding in the West. I did notice some differences from weddings in the West as well as some elements that might have been uniquely Indonesian. The wedding party was inclusive of the bride, groom, and each set of parents (no bridesmaids, groomsmen, etc). This rather simple set-up of 6 showed the family intimacy involved in marriage. At one point the bride and groom were kneeling in front of each set of parents, I presume for a blessing. Also, the parents were involved with the legal aspect of the wedding. After the vows and exchanging of rings the couple sat at a table to publicly sign legal marriage papers. Tommy approached us after the wedding to express his gratitude for us attending the ceremony. Quite honestly, though, I think we were the ones being blessed by being given the chance to share in his wedding joy!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment