Big fat Punjabi wedding day 2

First a note of clarification, while this was my second day of involvement in the wedding, it had been going on for several days before I got invited to play along, but I got to see some of the most important stuff. For day two for me we were attending the reception at the San Francisco design center. We arrived at 6:30, the designated start time to be wowed by the size and setup of the venue. We could choose any table among the second, third or fourth floor, and chose something right in front of the stage on the third floor. We were eventually joined by a nice couple who travel a lot because they are self described "UNESCO Junkies", and a few more of W's co workers. UNESCO tourism does give me some ideas about trip itinerary planning for the future, but that will come later. What would have been sufficient food for dinner turned to be just the appetizer, and dinner was finally open for business sometime after 9:00 p.m. There was traditional dancing, and a DJ spinning a mix of Hip hop, a tribute to Michael Jackson, and traditional Punjabi music. The music was loud, and the dance floor was rocking with people fueled up on delicious Indian cuisine, and free flowing alcohol. In addition to the robust sound system, up to three drummers were adding to the beat. I might not ever get the sounds of those drums out of my head, but they made it impossible to sit still in your chair. As with almost anything in life, if one person is doing something, there are surely hundreds of others out there on the internet uploading videos of themselves doing the same thing. A quick google search finds me this video of someone playing a Bhangra Dhol over a hip hop hit, turning a song I don't like very much into something I can't stop listening to. We didn't leave until after midnight, and could have stayed much longer had both W and I not had to work on Sunday. The food was awesome, the dancing was fun to watch, and even more fun to participate in, and I recommend you go out and find yourself some cardamom flavored ice cream, it is delicious. Just in case your curious I've only been to 11 of the 145 UNESCO sites, I guess that means I've got some work to do.

My 2 days as an honorary Punjabi

Last weekend was dedicated to exploring the bay area, and this weekend we spent time diving into the unique mix of cultures you can find here. W. has a co- worker who's daughter was getting married, and we were lucky enough to get invited. Part of her adventure last week was going to pick up some appropriate gear to wear for a Friday morning ceremony, and a Saturday reception. So with W. in her new red Salwar Kameez, and me in a suit with matching red tie, off we went to the Gudwara Sahib, Fremont, not knowing exactly what to expect. We were told to arrive early because we needed to be there in time to see the groom come in on a white horse, so when we pulled up nice and early, and I immediatley got put in a bright pink head scarf, and and a pink corsage. In a Sikh place of worship, you remove your shoes, and cover your head, and since I was part of the brides party, the pink accessories were compulsory, but I was certainly not alone in my pink gear, and I'm the kind of guy who's more than willing to do as. We were lead to food almost immediately, there were huge trays of samosas, and chick peas, and a few other Indian snacky foods. Finally when the party seemed to be growing quite large, you could hear drumming and singing in the distance. The groom and his half of the party numbering another couple hundred strong slowly made their way to the Gudwar. There was a ceremonial exchange of gifts between the families that took place on the front steps, and then all of the grooms family were invited in for snacks too. We helped ourselves to another round of snacks and then took our floor seats inside. Fortunately some more of W's co-workers arrived so I had a guy to sit with since men and women sit on separate sides inside. The ceremony was loooooong, and includes 4 laps around the main altar for the bride and groom. Making it seem even longer was that every word sung or spoken was in Punjabi, so I sat there dumstruck looking at all the colors and pageantry. The carpet inside is well padded, but any time over 30 minutes on the floor is a long time. The final part of the ceremony is the passing out of a customary sweet, Karah Prashad, that is mixed and distributed by hand, and was strange but tasty. After the ceremony a full, but vegetarian lunch was served, and we hung out for a while afterward, but eventually left right around the time the bride and groom were to take off. The full description of what happens in a Sikh wedding is here.