My wife Yura, where she works at the Polyclinic in Vratza, has a colleague, who’s son was getting married, and we were invited to this event. Most young people when they get married, in Bulgaria, first have a civil ceremony and after that, also a church wedding. And most of them also get married on a Saturday or Sunday, as in Bulgaria it is conceded bad luck to get married during the week days, and especially on Friday. A lot of the people getting married can’t afford a honeymoon and so are back to work on Monday, especially if it is their second marriage.
This was not the case with the son of my wife’s colleague. Yet they still got married on Saturday, so that other people would not have to take off work.
So there we were at 10:39 A.M. and late as usual, even though the wedding place, were the young couples get married is only two blocks away. But we got there in time to give the blushing bride some flowers as she came out the door after the civil ceremony. But we could still go to the church wedding as that was only four blocks away and everyone walks from the civil ceremony to the church wedding. I guess people think that if a person gets married twice on the same day, the marriage will last. But in reality it doesn’t work, as there is plenty of divorces in Bulgaria also!!
Almost 98% of the people in Bulgaria follow the Orthodox Religion and the church ceremony in quit different. First no one sits down and there is usually two priests and they are doing their thing with the holey water and then a crown is placed on both the bride and groom’s head then the crown’s are interchanged a couple of times, while the priests are all the time doing their chanting and then the two priests and the bride and groom circle the little table with the icon’s on it, two or three times. I have no idea what the priests are saying, but it seems to get the job of marring the couple O.K.. So I guess everything turns out good.
After the second wedding ceremony, everyone goes to the reception and in this case it was at the biggest restaurant in Vratza, which was at the Hemus Hotel in the Centrum of Vratza. This restaurant will sit about 300 people and the place was almost full. The had a DJ who played canned music. All different kinds. There were some young girls of between 18-25 years old, among the guest and Gene liked watching them dance the fast dances, as there boobs were bouncing around very much all over the place. Gene fell in love three times in the few hours that we were at the reception.
As far as food goes, there was too, too much. First there was a couple of bottles of hard liquor on each table, then also several bottles of wine, plus three different bottles of soda pop for each person, plus one bottle of water for each person, plus three bottles of beer for each person and also several platters of bread for each table. Then there was a large salad for each person and then they brought a large pancake filled with chicken salad for each person, and then a large platter for each person with five different cuts of meat plus some more salad and even then a desert of ice cream. No one could eat all of the food and in Bulgaria there is no tradition of doggie bags. I have no idea what they do with all the left over food!!!!
Did I have a good time Yes, Yes, Yes!!!
Things are much cheaper in Bulgaria, but this wedding must of cost well over $2500 dollars and remember the average Bulgarian only earns $100 dollars per month!!! This was someone’s wages for over two or three years.
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