My roommate and I have been lobbying pretty heavily for someone in the office to get married. I'd like to say we were looking out for their happiness, but really we just wanted to go to a wedding. Luckily my coworker came to the rescue and got us invited to her cousin's wedding.
My coworker is Punjabi and we have been told this is the wedding to seek out because apparently Punjabis really go all out. Unfortunately, they also hold their wedding ceremonies at night and this one was on a Sunday night. So we didn't actually see the wedding. We did, luckily, get to participate in the Barat (possibly misspelled) where the groom and his family basically dance a kilometer to the wedding grounds.
Now my real focus when going to a wedding is the visual spectacle it provides. The saris are incredible; 6 meters of silk bejeweled and embroidered in gold, I really can't imagine anything more decadent. And the ladies of my coworker's family really delivered.
But the dancing in the street on our way to the wedding was also something to see! Everyone danced: young and old, beautifully bejeweled and just wearing jeans. It was really lovely.
The wedding grounds were also quite fascinating. Food booths were set up much like the county fair, only with pink bunting. A small dance floor that I could tell would not be able to contain the family once the party got started. A section with seats and tables to take a break.
We arrived at 9 p.m. and left at 11:30. The groom had barely made it into the tent at that point. The bride had not yet arrived. Our coworker said the wedding happened around 3 a.m. She took the next day off (smart lady!).
Enjoy the photos...
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