Israeli Weddings. And what not to wear…
Israeli weddings are really good fun. Unlike the english formulas, there seem to be no two weddings the same here. And there appear to be no rules, people just do what they feel like and if it’s not your bag – tough!
Little Yaron was the youngest guest at our friends wedding on sunday night. We hired a car and drove all the way to the hulda forest in Rehovot. A long journey but totally worth it. The venue was very magical, a little dusty round the feet but ok so long as you were not in stilettos. The groom, usually a very quiet chap spoke beautifully under the chupa (very unusual, never seen that before) and we realised this was probably because it was the only opportunity to grab everyone’s attention. Israelis are not known for their attention spans. The crowning moment was our friend, the bride, who actually serenaded her chatan with “Why do birds suddenly appear…” and had even hired dancers and taught them the choreography for a backing dance, complete with costumes. It was fabulously cheesy. Of course we were all loving it and laughing along (the bride had a glint in her eye too) but I did notice the older guests taking it very seriously. It seems there is a generation gap there.
As for the the fashions, it still amazes me what Israelis believe to be acceptable attire for a formal function. I saw at least 5 people who looked like they were going on a tiyul. I told off 2 male friends who turned up in jeans, telling them that only sabras can wear jeans to a wedding. It does make the dancing a lot more fun though, as everyone is more relaxed. The only consistancy I have found at Israeli weddings (non-religious ones, anyhow) is that if you hang around the dance floor long enough, it becomes a techno-nightclub. This is fine for us “younger” folk but unfortunate for the older men who happen to have the stamina to be out there, and suddenly find themselves at a loss with what to do with their arms. Or how to wiggle in time to the music. Poor things. One minute its 70’s music, then 80’s, they are just about holding their own with the 90’s and then wham. No idea. I watched one poor fellow of about 50 flounder around for about 10 minutes before packing it in to join his friends for a coffee.
Little Yaron was hugely popular, particularly amongst the female guests, and people seemed truly amazed to see such a tiny baby at a wedding. “Wow, he is so tiny! How much did he weigh? How old is he?” Which made me wonder, I mean it’s not so amazing that he made it to the wedding, it’s not as if he got himself dressed and drove for 2 hours! Surely they should have been more impressed that I was there???