wedding day

Heather and I were invited to wedding in Choma recently.

Nevermind that I didn't know the bride or groom (the groom's mom invited us), we had a fine time.

Weddings are so cultural it's only natural there are many differences between an average wedding in the States and a wedding here in Zambia. Here are a couple examples:

• In the States, arriving late to a wedding is extremely socially improper. In fact, I'd say if you're going to be late, don't bother attending at all. In Zambia, guests plan to be fashionably "late" (as per the time listed on the invitation). Our invitation listed 13:30 as the start time for the festivities, so we arrived around 15:00 hours with time to spare before the bride and groom arrived.
• In Zambia, there is a knife child (boy or girl) who dances into the celebration with a large knife to cut the cake (the dance is pre-choreographed). In the States, the knife is just set out on the cake table.
• In the States, guests are only welcome by specific invitation. In Zambia... well, how are you going to refuse some distant friend or relative who shows up to join in the celebration of your special day?? impossible.
• In Zambia, gifts are announced and celebrated with a lot of hoopla. In the States, sometimes couples don't even open their wedding gifts themselves, or sometimes they open them after the actual wedding day.