Wednesday, November 01, 2006

another wedding

DSC08353

I've been to 6 weddings (so far) in 2006.  Wedding number 6 was last night.  One of my former students, the groom, tied the knot with one of his junior high classmates. 

In Taiwan it is common for the bride to change dresses throughout the wedding banquet.  Like many wedding banquets in Taiwan, this banquet was also outside under big tarps right in front of the groom's home.  There were probably about 300-400 people present for the huge 12 course meal.  And no Taiwanese wedding would be complete without Karoke and fireworks. 

DSC08354 DSC08358

Nov 1, 2006 10:12:23 PM | life in taiwan, my students, what's up

5 Comments

Deb

Amanda, the first thing I immediately thought when you said, "Wedding #6 was last night," was...who gets married on a Tuesday night? Is the custom in Taiwan to get married just any ol' time? That's very interesting. Having a weekday/workday hanging over your head instead of a free weekend didn't seem to stop the celebrating from the look of the pics. Maybe days and time don't matter as much to Taiwanese as to Americans.

Posted by: Deb | Wednesday, November 01, 2006 at 11:02 PM

Leslie

Dress changes, karoke, and fireworks...now, that's an interesting wedding!

Posted by: Leslie | Thursday, November 02, 2006 at 11:44 AM

amanda

Great comment/question Deb!

Actually, the day of a wedding is **very** important to Taiwanese people. That is why they do not just reserve them for weekends. Many consult a fortune teller and Chinese almanacs to find the perfect day for a wedding for the bride and groom involved.

The sound of the date can also influence the wedding date chosen. My friend had her engagement cermony on Sept. 9th. 9-9. Which sounds like joe-joe, which also sounds like the words for long, long. So, 9-9 is a good day for a wedding because the marriage will last a long, long time.

Posted by: amanda | Thursday, November 02, 2006 at 10:28 PM

Deb

Thanks so much for answering my question! Now that is a very interesting concept. Americans would never have thought of that! I'm glad you posted this. Thanks!

Posted by: Deb | Friday, November 03, 2006 at 05:45 AM

Tammy

I am sure no one gets married on 4-4!!

Posted by: Tammy | Sunday, November 05, 2006 at 12:40 AM

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"culture moments" Being a foreigner provides a life where nothing--not even buying bread--is dull. Even after living here 4 years, I still run into "culture moments." This weekend, I went to buy some bread to make some sandwhiches. The little bakery near my house sells wheat bread in a package labled in English "brown toast." I saw the package, grabbed a loaf, went to the counter and paid. When I got home to make my comfort food--PBJ--I pulled out two slices of bread. But it was not wheat bread like I was expecting. No, it was raisin bread. They had put rasin bread in the "brown toast" package. Now, granted there was probably a sign on the shelf at the bakery saying "rasin bread"--but I didn't stop to try to decipher it. So, as I slathered the extra-crunchy peanut butter on my knife, I sighed and thought "never a dull moment." Another thing that is NEVER dull for me is using an elevator. At school now, I ride the elevator often (my office is on the 9th floor). 4 out of 5 times I ride the elevator, I have a "not dull" moment. :) Yesterday, the conversation was in English with, I guess, a teacher from another department. Stranger: "Are you happy?" Amanda (looking around, unsure question was for her and unsure how to answer and thinking "what kinda question is that for someone you don't even know"): "Uh . . Sure." Stranger: "Good. I am not happy." Amanda: "hmm." Stranger: "I am not happy because I have to go to work." Amanda: "I see." (gets off the elevator) Stranger: "Nice to meet you. Bye." (doors close) Last week, the most memorable encounter was with students. The elevator was going down--and it was FULL by an American's opinion. (I must add here: If the elevator is an "American full," it is probably only about half of a "Taiwanese full.") So anyway, the elevator was full--all engineering students (AKA all boys). When it got to the English department floor (4th floor) the boys moved over, making some room for the foreign English teacher and said in English, "Come on, come on." I got in, and as the doors shut there was a chorus of giggles. Then from the back, one of them whispered in Chinese, "Watch out! Careful what you say, she understands Chinese." I nodded a yes and waited for the first floor to arrive. I think the thing with the elevators at school is that everyone knows who I am--I kinda stand out, you know. But, I don't know them. So to me they are strangers, but they feel like they "know me." So, I am always having awkward-to-me conversations in the elevators. (However, just for the record, awkward conversations in elevators also occur off school porperty.) Ahh . .. culture moments. Gotta love em.
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