Jack and I belong to the British Community Association, a British ex-pat club. It is a relatively small club where we go to escape the (often incestuous) tendrils of AUC as our only social outlet. The staff at the club are a marvelous group of Egyptians. Somehow they manage to put up with a lot of colonialist tendencies from the club members with great elan.
We really enjoy the club, the staff, the atmosphere. Last weekend, we were informed that one of the barmen was getting married. “Mabruk” (congratulations) we told him. The next time we saw him was on Monday, when he asked Jack if we would come to the wedding. So on Monday we were invited to a Thursday wedding. This is normal here. Wedding invitations are frequently oral, and, even more frequently, extended up until mere hours before the ceremony.
So…Jack and I had to scramble to find appropriate attire for a wedding! Jack found a shop with summer suits on sale, and got two (yes, two) beautiful new suits! I scrounged in my closet and made due with what I had – off-white linen dress and Egyptian blazer. I would have LOVED to find something new, however the week was incredibly busy and I had no time to shop.
Last night was the wedding. We met up with some others at the club, and went to Heliopolis (where the church was) from there. Apparently in the “good” Coptic churches weddings are scheduled practically on top of each other. Our friend’s wedding was at 8pm. We arrived at 7:30pm, and there was a wedding in progress. We walked into the church and watched the end of that wedding.
While wedding A was going on, minions were scurrying around in the aisles, setting up for the next wedding! New arbors were being erected, flowers were being set out, runners prepared. As *soon* as wedding A finished, wedding B decorations were hurriedly put into place and wedding B began! It was a model of time-efficiency that I have rarely experienced in Egypt!
Our friend’s wedding was beautiful. Very Egyptian. Children were running around in the church, going up to the altar/wedding party to join in and pose for pictures. The bride and groom were smiling and laughing about the whole thing. We understood NONE of the service, since it was Coptic AND in Arabic. The bride and groom were “sermoned to” and then put on ceremonial capes and crowns (I didn’t get a crown for my wedding! pout). The bridesmaid was ululating during the service, followed by most of the women in attendance (including myself – on at least one occasion!)
After the service, everyone was hustled out into a courtyard for the receiving line and pictures while the next wedding was set up and begun. Our friend seemed truly happy that we had come. We had a good time – it was a VERY different experience than any other wedding I’ve been to.
**Interesting side note – An Egyptian friend had once commented to us that if we went to an Egyptian wedding, the photographers and videographers (‘cuz they are ALL filmed) would focus in on the khawagas – foreigners. It was VERY true. In the “other” wedding that we saw, before our friends’, the videographer was panning the crowd and got a good ZOOM in on Jack before continuing the pan. There were a number of khawaga at our friend’s service, and we ALL got a bunch of face time on the film, as well as being photographed with the bride and groom in the receiving line.**
What a great opportunity to see the life of the “real” Cairo, and what an honor to be invited! Yet another great memory to store for when you’re back in the States.
What a great opportunity to see the life of the “real” Cairo, and what an honor to be invited! Yet another great memory to store for when you’re back in the States.