A Kenyan Wedding

My Kenyan roommate from the July Fogarty orientation in Washington, DC got married on Saturday, and she invited me to Nairobi for the event. The wedding was beautiful and incorporated both Western and Kenyan traditions. The ceremony was like any other Christian one in the States. The bridal party walked down the aisle, followed by the bride and her parents. Vows were exchanged, rings were carefully placed, and prayers were said. Even the pastor's sermon felt very familiar except for the one part when he went on about the key to a healthy marriage is to understand that the woman is the subordinate and the man is the captain of the ship. This touches on some interesting cultural differences that will have to be a separate blog post in the future.












Many of the women were dressed in traditional Kenyan clothing and I couldn't get enough of the different patterns and designs.












A 3 hour reception followed the ceremony. It took place outside the church and there were several large tents set up with a center table displaying the cakes (yes there was more than one!).

























After we ate, the bridal party came back from taking pictures, and they were escorted to the reception by a bongo quartet and many singing and dancing guests.











Then came the speeches. Each parent shared their blessings with the bride and groom, and the grandfathers provided their words of wisdom to the guests.

This was followed by more dancing and singing at which point I decided to give African dancing a try!

























All in all, another fabulous weekend in Kenya!

As always, additional pictures are here