Spanish Wedding Crashers

 

Spain is considered to be one of the top travel destinations in the world, and for us, it was a must see. Not because of the tapas, rich history or beautiful beaches, but because my friend was getting married. When I was in high school, my family hosted Rodrigo for one year while he went to school, learned English and played soccer. Even though it has been 15 years since we’ve lived together, we remain “brothers”. So when he and Arantza invited us to their wedding, we immediately accepted.

Rodrigo’s father is the mayor of their small town named Pozaldez, which in the summer months is home to nearly 500 people. In the
winter, that number drops to approximately 300 residents. Think Mayberry, but with a lot more dancing. And when the mayor’s youngest son is getting married, you know it’s going to be a party. The ceremony took place at Rodrigo and Arantza’s newly constructed home, which is gorgeous. Over 100 of their closest friends and family attended to celebrate their union, as Rodrigo’s father conducted the service. The whole service was in Spanish, which we don’t speak, but I can tell you this…Rodrigo’s father read a lot of legal information, a violin played, a couple of friend’s shared stories, rings were exchanged, and we all laughed and cried as we celebrated this brand new marriage. And then the party began!

Confetti cannons exploded and wine bottles were uncorked, as people broke out in random cheers. We all made our way to a local restaurant, where we were placed at the family table. Unreal! The hospitality of Rodrigo, Arantza and the family was unparalleled. We were so thankful. The wedding menu consisted of a three course meal over a span of several hours, and four drinking glasses! One for water, one for vino blanco with the fish, one for vino tinto with the lamb, and one for champagne with the toast. Never have I sat at a table with four glasses for one person! At 12:30am Sarah and I looked at each other, and realized we still hadn’t been served dessert. When it was finally served, it was delicious!

There more cheers too. At one point the entire room cheered for me to stand up and give Sarah a kiss, since they knew we were newlyweds as well. After the cake had been cut with a sword, we eventually made our way out to the main street of Pozaldez and watched a fireworks show that would rival that of Washington D.C. on the 4th of July. At the conclusion, everyone made their way to the dance floor, and the party continued until around 6:00am.

This wedding was amazing! Not because of the festivities, but because we were there to witness the wedding of two wonderful people. Thank you Rodrigo and Arantza for inviting us to celebrate your special day, and creating some memories to go along with it.

We wanted to share this with you also. Here is a short list of just a few ways we noticed Spanish weddings differ from the typical American wedding:
1. The dress code is very formal, with many of the female guests wearing ball gowns and male guests wearing suits.
2. The bride and groom to arrive together, while all of the guests waited outside of the ceremony venue ready to escort them in and be seated.

3. Songs from American movies are very popular for weddings here (and in general too!).
4. There were several speeches during the wedding ceremony, as opposed to the reception.
5. As previously mentioned, there were four glasses for drinking. Four!
6. The main courses were lovely, but besides the salad served before the lamb, there were no sides.
7. Spanish weddings last until the wee morning hours!