Moldovan Wedding

I'm writing now in Paris on Thursday, October 17.  Zach and I left Moldova only the day before yesterday, but already it seems a world away. There's still more to tell you about Moldova, and I'll try to get this out tonight.

The family wedding was Saturday night, October 12. Ilie's nephew was getting married — his brother's son. We got all gussied up.

Son and Father, off to do some serious dancing

A taxi came to take us — five of us all together, counting Iulia and Ilie — to the little village of Susleni, about 20 minutes away. We drove through humble dirt roads, rounded a corner, and there was the wedding hall! 

Inside, the bride and groom waited under a canopy to greet the guests. 

After we were photographed with the bridal couple, we took seats against the wall and waited. We waited there for about an hour and a half, watching guests being received, the important family members toasting with glasses of sparkling wine. There was no sign of tables where we might eventually eat something. Or drink something. I began to get worried. Meanwhile, the wedding party occasionally did a bit of dancing:

We watched from our seats along the wall. 

Around nine o'clock we were asked to form a circle. We danced around a couple of times. "Danced" is stretching it a bit, as my feet had no idea what to do. Then we were led upstairs to the second floor, where tables were all set up, laden with food.

We ate and ate. And made toasts to the happy couple! And toasts to one another! New plates kept arriving at our table. Fresh bottles of cognac were brought to our table to replace the empty ones. There were frequent toasts! Every hour or so, a lovely young woman would come around with a big tray and take away our chicken bones and orange peels. 

The dancing continued, almost everyone participating:

There was live music:

Midnight came and went. The toasts continued. The dancing continued.

Sometimes we joined in the dancing! Occasionally they played Western tunes, including a lively rendition of "Hit the Road, Jack." We'd come back to the table after dancing a bit and rejoin the family.

Iulia and Ilie...  Iulia really knows how to have a good time! I danced with her a couple of times. 

Two o'clock in the morning came and went. Three o'clock. Four o'clock. Ilie began to dance right about now.

Dancing occasionally stopped for traditional ceremonies — breaking braided bread and sharing this with the guests, throwing the bouquet, cutting the cake.  Between each of these, there was more dancing.

Often, the dancing was mostly men.

Warren and Zach were both dancing in this one. You can barely see Zach's face in the background.

Shortly before 5:00 am, the couple was seated in two chairs. The bride's veil was removed and replaced with a head scarf. Members of the family approached and draped blankets around the couple — blanket on top of blanket — and stuffed money under the bride's kerchief.  They kissed both the bride and the groom on both cheeks.

And then, finally, it was over. We went outside into the cold black of night, music still blasting from inside. I may have been shivering with cold at the time, but I'm warmed by the memory of this remarkable night.