When you don't understand what is happening:
Japanese weddings are long.
Chinese weddings are longer.
But Swedish weddings, take the cake!
We were so excited to attend our first Swedish wedding (Yes, I now have Swedish cousins!) We were told to be ready to board the bus for the countryside at 2:00PM for a
3:00PM start so I knew this was going to be a long day. As most of you know, I like to be prepared for outings so I packed an extra sweater, jacket, food, and bottled water for the day.
We arrived at the beautiful wedding location and the ceremony took place. We were warned that basically all of the wedding ceremony/reception would be in Swedish but we were just happy to be spending time with family.
As soon as the ceremony ended, the drinking began.
1. Champagne
For
2 HOURS the guests drank champagne and listened to speeches outside in the fields.
2. Elderberry Schnapps
We were then escorted into the dining room where the guests were given elderberry schnapps and a few more toasts were delivered.
3. Vodka
The waiters came around with shot glasses of vodka for us to raise our glasses for the next few speeches.
4. Carslberg Beer
Large glasses of Carlsberg beer were poured for us to sip while listening to loved ones praise or roast the bride and groom.
5. White Wine
White wine was poured for us to eat with our herring. (No, I didn't eat it but D loved it!)
6. Red Wine
After a few more rounds of speeches the Red Wine was poured for us to eat with our fish.
7. Sweet Dessert Wine
Paired with the delicious Creme Brule.
8. Whiskey Shots.
Each guest was given a whiskey shot to take with the others at the table.
9. Open Bar
When the dinner was over at
MIDNIGHT and the dancing began (the band only came on at
12:30 AM, Sea-breezes and Melon balls were aplenty.
So as lovely as dinner was, we sat and listened to speeches in SWEDISH for
6 HOURS STRAIGHT. At Swedish weddings you don't get to sit next to your significant other! Thankfully, I sat next to J, a very friendly guy from New Jersey, who married a Swedish girl last month and explained a lot of the Swedish customs to me.
Swedish Customs:
1. Every time there is a toast you have to raise your glass, make eye contact with everyone at your table, drink, and then make eye contact with everyone at your table again before placing your drink down.
2. Every time the bride goes to the bathroom, all the ladies have to get up and kiss the groom. (and vice versa) I was kissing my new cousin all night!
3. Ladies do not wear red or black to weddings. Red dresses signify that your slept with the groom!
I didn't get the memo beforehand...No I wasn't wearing red...I was wearing black though. (The groom's half-sister, however, was wearing red...)
4. Anyone can give a speech at a wedding. The only requirement is that you email the toastmaster to let them know beforehand. (I was told that the 6 hours worth of speeches at this wedding was nothing compared to other Swedish weddings!)
The wedding went on until after
3:00AM, when the bus dropped everyone off at the hotel for an after party! I must say, after a few dances and some candy from the bar, we were out the door at
1:15 AM. Next time we'll have to learn to pace ourselves, and also learn a little Swedish, Skoll!
Beautiful greenery, clean streets, breathable air...Singapore is a country that gives you something to "sing" about!
The colorful recycling bins actually made me want to recycle even more!
Now there are many other reasons why Singapore is so clean:
As many of you know, I have tried several different Yoga classes. As many of you also know, I've left several yoga classes more stressed then when I first stepped foot in the door. During a recent trip to Thailand, D convinced me to try a couples yoga class one night before dinner. I said to myself, "Yoga in Thailand couldn't be any worse than Yoga anywhere else."
Now most people would say, "This is such a beautiful and peaceful place to practice Yoga". I, however, said to D, "We are doing Yoga outside during dusk? Do they want us all to get Dengue Fever?" For those of you who don't know what Dengue Fever is, it's an infectious tropical disease spread by mosquitoes. The disease is prevalent in many South Asian countries. The mosquitoes that carry Dengue Fever bite during the day..especially right after sunrise and right before sunset. It's bad enough getting those annoying mosquito bites that keep you up scratching all night long. Did I want to get Dengue Fever, a disease with no cure, that has the potential to kill you? Heck no!
The instructor was interesting. D and I could hardly follow what he was saying, not because we couldn't do the exercises (although we had a rough time) we couldn't understand what he was saying. He kept saying "Dog, now up and down to the dog" I couldn't help but laugh during most of the session.
When I wasn't laughing, taking pictures of the other couples, or reapplying bug spray, I was busy writing the word YOGA in the sand with a stone (see first picture).
Guess what we had last week here in Hong Kong? Another public holiday!
Different teams (most sponsored by their companies) were dressed in colorful uniforms. I asked D why he wasn't participating this year for his company team. Apparently there are team tryouts and lots of practices. The competitors take this event very seriously!
Even though we didn't stay to watch many races we could really feel the excitement in the air. The smells of sweat, alcohol, sunblock and pollution (of course) filled our lungs. Maybe I'll form my own racing team to compete in the race next year...or better yet I'll just watch.
