Wedding Bells

A few weeks ago, the secretary walked into the pod and handed me a large embossed envelope.  I opened it up and pulled out a fancy invitation to a wedding.  At first, I was quite confused... since none of my friends at SPH are getting married, but then I realized what it was.

Indonesians typically invite tons of people to their weddings.  Their friends and family.  But also any friends and family of their friends and family.  Four hundred is a small wedding.  And anyone who wants to come is welcome, whether or not you know the happy couple or not.

Well, this wedding is the wedding of the son of the people who started the school that I work at... yeah.. crazy connections, right.  All the teachers at my school were invited to the wedding, and a group of us decided to go together.  Let's face it, it's not every day that you get invited to a billionaire's wedding.

We hopped on the bus with the other teachers to go downtown and arrived at the convention center.  We were some of first of the three thousand... THREE THOUSAND people who attended the wedding... craziest thing ever.

Decorated like a garden, even the floors were covered with fake grass

 Part of the two hour wedding included watching the couple thank their parents for raising them to follow  Christ.  It was quite touching.  We also got to watch the family group photos... not as touching.

We were all invited to the immediate reception, which was full of delicious food from around the world.  Later in the evening, the special guests who have a closer connection to the family were invited to a banquet... but we only got the unlimited sushi and calamari and Peking duck and truffle-filled chicken.

Full choir... there was also a full orchestra

We signed the guestbook to get the ticket for our party favors

Indonesia does this thing where whenever they want to congratulate someone, whether for opening a store, a birthday, an anniversary, or a wedding, they send these foam signs with flowers.  This wedding had more than I could count.. that went further than I could see from where I stood... they have friends in many places

Tearing down after the ceremony

You know it's a big-time even when there are this many cops

Southern Hospitality

Some good friends of mine were getting married in South Carolina this past weekend.  I decided to go down with another friend and make a week-long vacation of it, some quality time with my old roommate before we head to Asia.

First stop: Myrtle Beach.  After a much too long walk to the beach and then down the beach to get to the board walk, we found a great seafood place and enjoyed a beach-side dinner. Typical tourists, right?  After a long walk back up the beach, getting lost, and a very expensive taxi ride, we made it to the room we were renting.  The next two days were full of sunshine, sand, Lunchables, and tumbling in the waves.  The perfect stop on the way to the wedding.

When we left the beach, we drove into the mountains.  I had been to this area for a couple of weeks of summer camp and spent last year's spring break trip here with friends.  I was so excite to go back!

A hike up Table Rock consisted of seven miles of hiking, a lot of geckos, a few snakes, and a dip in the waterfall to cool off.  

The wedding was the perfect time to spend with friends from college, most of whom I doubt I'll see again, at least for a few years.  The day was beautiful, the wedding sacred, and the reception a party--complete with dancing, vuvuzelas, and sparklers.

My trip back to the area confirmed my love for the area.  The scenery is beautiful.  The weather perfect.  And the people so welcoming.  We stayed with the parents of a friend, and felt like part of the family.  I love the southern hospitality, and cannot wait until I can return to spend some more time with these amazing people.