军钢结婚了：GangGang Gets Married! – around the world in 60 seconds

What a whirlwind week it is been! Two vacations, one particular marriage, and no courses entirely produced for the supreme recipe for achievements! There is significantly to explain to, so get settled and appreciate!

As you could by now know from previous calendar year, GangGang is a pretty shut pal of mine here in Quzhou. He’s a math trainer, so we never talk a ton of English, but the language barrier has honestly under no circumstances been substantially of an concern. Previous yr more than supper was when he very first informed me about his girlfriend, who was ending up med faculty in a further town a several several hours absent. Immediately after bonding in excess of the ups and downs of our respective prolonged distance interactions, GangGang requested if I’d like to be a groomsmaid/bridesmaid in his marriage the subsequent year… At this position I had just resolved to remain in China a further calendar year, so it was an apparent yes!

Traditionally, Chinese weddings are quite different from what we’re utilised to in the West, although some factors have permeated their way via, these kinds of as white wedding dresses and elaborate bouquets. But by and substantial, the Chinese marriage traditions are intact and often performed. And GangGang’s marriage was the perfect instance!

As a member of the wedding ceremony party, it was an all day affair beginning about 6:00 A.M. to put together. But I’m not speaking about hair and makeup planning, because as a groomsmaid, I was not exactly afforded that luxury.

All of the groomsmen (additionally yours certainly) met outside the house the college gate the place five smooth black Mercedes rentals ended up waiting around for us. 

With the aid of some loved ones associates, we adorned these automobiles with an amazing sum of ribbon and bouquets to get them wedding ceremony-completely ready. Here’s Billy, cigarette in hand, undertaking his best to be as neat as his ride!

This motorcade of groomsmen will drive to the bride’s home, the place the groomsmen and the groom will try to “knock down” the door of the bride’s room to retrieve her. The bridesmaids are the kinds who shield the bride by maintaining the door locked and shut, and they can only be placated by the providing of red envelopes stuffed with funds by the groomsmen. These envelopes are typically shoved underneath the doorway right until the bride is glad, or until eventually the guys uncover a way to trick the girls into allowing them in.

When we arrived in the bride’s hometown of Jiangshan, I was switched above to Team Bride and brought to the bride’s space to assist shield/enjoy the added benefits. As you can see, the bride appeared certainly stunning in her white robe. She wore this dress for most of the day, only modifying into regular Chinese red soon after the most important ceremony that night. And as for the adult men breaking in… sad to say, 1 of the other bridesmaids was duped into opening the doorway by just one of the guys telling her to allow the photographer in for pictures. Although, when it arrives to the significance of wedding day pics, can you definitely blame her?

Following coming into the place, GangGang presented his quickly-to-be wife with a pretty bouquet of bouquets. Then he experienced some do the job to do… he had to locate her shoe! A single of her shoes was by the bed she was sitting down on, and the other was concealed. He wasn’t permitted to leave with her until eventually he found the other shoe and fundamentally Cinderella-ed her by placing her footwear on and sealing it with a kiss. So funny to check out him going close to the room, and this kind of a sweet photo arrived later on!

Following that the pair toasted the bride’s dad and mom with tea, as for each custom. Then it was off to lunch! Lunch was a little bit of a wrestle for me since I was not with the groomsmen (whom are all my great mates) any more but as an alternative having to bond with the bridesmaids, who previously realized each and every other extremely perfectly. Nevertheless, it was a fun meal with lots of candy (one particular of the groomsmen was in charge of carting around a Halloween-sized bag) and delicious food stuff.

Right after lunch, we went back to the bride’s place to fetch her things to go back again to Quzhou. As for every tradition, GangGang carried her out of the condominium and into the guide vehicle of the motorcade. The groomsmen then set off a ridiculous amount of fireworks which scared me 50 percent to demise! But quickly soon after that we were on our way to the couple’s new apartment back in Quzhou.

The couple’s new apartment was completely adorned to welcome the newlyweds as very well as their attendees, the two in honor of their marriage and the Mid-Autumn competition. Deviating from what I know of American marriage customs, a lot of Chinese consciously pick to get married on the day of holiday seasons to assure that all people will be off of do the job and thus in a position to show up at. So GangGang in fact obtained married on the day of the Mid-Autumn competition, which we celebrated with conventional treats at the newlyweds’ apartment. The groom’s mom and dad have been then toasted with tea once again to honor the residence as housing the new marriage.

Right after that, it was time for marriage social gathering pictures! For about an hour we took extravagant shots outdoors in a nearby park in advance of heading to the major marriage venue, a wonderful ballroom in a new resort where by the rest of the wedding ceremony attendees would arrive for the official ceremony. This is wherever factors begun to get intriguing.

Indeed, there was an formal ceremony. Certainly, the bride walked down the aisle with her father. There was even an trade of vows and rings!

But there were being also announcers, like one thing you’d see at a attractiveness pageant or a sporting activities gala. Certainly an unexpected twist. But not as surprising as the American Idol-esque performances!

I should really know, seeing as I experienced to make one particular myself… Singing in Chinese ought to be listed on my resume at this stage! But that’s not all…

Immediately after the ceremony, the bride changed into her far more regular dress. GangGang improved as well, and the two commenced heading around the place individually toasting all of the company, as is custom. The bridesmaids and groomsmen were being also a part of these toasts, so needless to say the alcohol was flowing. By the end of the night, everyone was experience the marriage buzz!

As most of the guests still left to go house, the wedding ceremony social gathering (together with a several a lot more close mates) went up to the newlyweds’ resort space to participate in 闹洞房, wherever the newlyweds are teased by their pals by enjoying sexual innuendo online games. Historically, this tradition was to educate newlyweds about intercourse and split the uncomfortable rigidity, specified the distinct deficiency of intercourse schooling offered to youthful persons all through the early dynasties. Nowadays, it’s much more so just a time for drunk buddies to influence their freshly-married friends to kiss in entrance of them… something incredibly almost never done in China. This tradition has gotten a large amount of unfavorable press recently with a lot of pranks and games gone wrong, but my practical experience was very little extra than that of a reasonably tame high school celebration.

Definitely a new type of society shock to see my normally very gentle Chinese mates speaking so openly though! 

After that, it was back property to my apartment at faculty, wedding day favor total of sweet and cookies in hand. I was certainly fatigued, and even fell asleep upcoming to Billy (one of the groomsman, also my great pal) on the 20 moment travel again.

Over-all, I imagine my highlights had been as follows: donning this lovely qipao, (the conventional Chinese dress) surprising GangGang with a movie I secretly place alongside one another of his colleagues and college students congratulating him on his wedding, (his new spouse explained to me he teared up a small bit when he observed it) and getting to devote the day with all of my ideal buddies/colleagues as part of the wedding ceremony get together! Staff Groom in distinct was a blast!

But of course, none of that as opposed to observing how blissfully happy GangGang and his new spouse were to lastly be married soon after their prolonged distance… this will most definitely go down as just one of my all-time most loved memories of my time in China.

I am so, so grateful to have been aspect of this unique day!