I cannot believe that it is already 2012!! Happy New Year to everyone :)
I just wrapped spending time in the southern part of Zambia. First I went down to Lusaka to attend a wedding. It was my first non-village wedding here in Zambia so I was pretty excited. It was a lot of fun, but also very different than what I expected! It was held at like a community hall in the kabwata part of Lusaka. The family of the bride (aunts and uncles pretty much) wore outfits made out of matching brown icitenges and members of the committee (women who helped behind the scences stuff like decorating and set up) also were wearing their own citenge outfits. Then at first a matron dances in with a little girl and little boy who I would equate to a flower girl and ring bearer. And then the line-up (aka bridesmaids and groomsmen) danced in. And I do mean DANCE. They were SO hardcore that it was really fun to watch. Then they went out, had a costume change while the bride and groom then danced in. They didnt dance as intensly, but they were still dancing instead of walking. Then the line-up came in again and did their rountine with each pair getting their own opportunity to bust a move. And as this is happening members of the audience (I dont know what you would call us onlookers) were screaming, cheering, and several even got up to dance as well. Then there were speeches from a representative from both bride and groom and then a guest of honor who's affiliation with the wedding praty was questionable. Then we moved onto dinner which was a buffet and were warned by the MC to "take only what you know so that you dont wind up in the toliet." Those are words of wisdom!
After eating then it was time for cutting the cake and feeding one another and then presenting some of the cake as a gift to the parents of the bride. Then there was a dedication dance from the groom to the bride of Shania Twain's classic, "From this Moment." After this dance the opportunity to dance for other couples happened and I went and danced with my guy and this led to an eruption of cheers and screams from ALL the onlookers. It was so embarrassing, but we stuck through the whole song and tried to pretend no one was watching us. Then the rest of the evening was dancing and a time for photo op with the bride and groom. I felt the whole thing was more of a really fun reception and not so much a wedding ceremony. THere was no father walking the bride down the aisle, no exchanging of rings or vows, and not a whole lot of smiling from the bride. You can check out some pics by clicking on the link below!
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.944479424096.2336351.59511885&type=1&l=df8e397ae9
Then after celebrating in Lusaka a few days later I headed to Victoria Falls and Livingstone to celebrate Christmas. I stayed at a really nice place that had a pool, big bed, and a fabulous shower. Pretty sure that everyday I was there I took at least 2 showers a day. Sometimes even 3 if I felt like it because it was just THAT great. The falls were also really fun to see because there was quite a bit of water because it is rainy season and thankfully we didnt encounter any baboons who were after our food. Again if you want to see some pics click on the link below!
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.931464486136.2333894.59511885&type=1&l=f467de9e80..
