Happy National Day!

Happy National Day! I spent my first National Day crashing a wedding. My friend Cindy invited me to a wedding for a couple she met in high school. I have been hoping to see a wedding here and wasn't about to miss the opportunity.

The wedding was in a beautiful hotel event room. We got there really early and sat at a table with friends of Cindy's from high school that were all lovely and I was able to chat with a few of her friends. There was already a big spread of snacks and drinks out on the table. They also showed a slide show of the couple's professional wedding photos and there were hundreds of them!

In China, you have to apply with the government to get married, and after that, there is no need for a ceremony and if you do have a ceremony, you can plan it any way that you want. They had a MC that led the event. The couple shared vows, thanked their parents with a traditional sharing of the same tea mug, and poured champagne over a fountain of glasses. I didn't understand a word, but I got what was going on. The flower girl who brought up the rings in the middle of the ceremony got the most wildest of the moments of cheering.

Toward the end of the ceremony, they asked all the single ladies to come to the front for the bouquet "toss." Instead of tossing the bouquet, all the single ladies grab a piece of string from the bouquet and tug. The girl with the string tied to the entire bouquet wins. Before we started the "toss" the MC was quite amused by me. He started asking me questions in Chinese that I didn't understand and shoved a microphone into my face. I just replied with what I thought was the last word that he had said. The room went silent and then the giggling began. I guess the MC asked me what kind of Asian man did I want to marry and I answered "Japanese." I had no clue. Cindy was laughing uncontrollably next to me. I didn't even win the "toss" but I will never live that moment down! I even got to be in one of the official group shots with the bride and groom. I will always be remembered as that white girl at the wedding who likes Japanese men!

Then, we had a fantastic lunch. The food just kept appearing at our table! There was a ton of meat, but there was still enough vegetables for me to get plenty full. The bride changed from a Western white dress into a traditional red Chinese wedding dress that I thought was much more beautiful than her white dress. The bride and groom go to every table for a toast. The best man and woman follow along with trays of candy or cigarettes. The bride then goes to each person, accepts their monetary gift, and then feeds the guest a piece of candy or a cigarette. We left after our table toasted the bride and groom and gave them their gifts.

Cindy, her friend, Grace, and I went to shop in the same Hutong neighborhood that we had been to the night before. I had hummus and toast while waiting for our appointment to get our nails done. The hummus was yummy and my nails turned out awesome. Next, we went to Cindy's grandparents' apartment to pick up a cake they had ordered for Cindy's dad. It was fun to meet her grandparents even though we could not talk to one another.

Then, Grace and her mom had invited Cindy and me over to their apartment for dinner. Her mom cooked us a delicious meal and I felt so spoiled being the guest at their house. Grace's mom was so concerned that I am a "vegetarian" in Beijing and kept putting food into my bowl! She was really sweet.

Finally, Cindy told me it was time to go. Her dad was ready for his cake and her parents wanted to meet me. I enjoyed meeting them, and Cindy translated a bit for me while we had cake. They cracked up when Cindy told them about my wedding incident.

It was a great day. I feel so spoiled!