Daily Report: Wedding In Kimaya

Today, Epril and I were invited to the wedding of one of her cousins, Kako and his new wife Aming, in Jasaan, with the reception held at the nearby Basamanggas Resort.

It was a standard Catholic wedding, but there were quite a few aspects that seem to be indigenous to the Philippines that you don't see in normal weddings. For example, the bride and groom have "primary sponsors", who are sort of like Godparents (but in the Philippines, it can be dozens of people) and "secondary sponsors", who are people who help perform the wedding ritual.


The happy couple, Kako and Aming.

The wedding reception at Basamanggas
Resort was a simple and brief affair.Also, I think this might be common in Catholic Rituals in some countries, but a viel is placed over the bride and groom, and then a cord is wrapped around their shoulders in a figure-eight. (An in-depth description of all of the facets of a Filipino Catholic wedding can be found here.)

The reception was held at Basamanggas Resort, which is close to Epril's family's house. It was a surprisingly subdued affair that was over in less than an hour, with no dancing (other than the bride and groom, and guests with either the bride or groom), no drinking, and a buffet-style dinner. I think this has more to do with the impecunious nature of the families involved in the wedding more than any lack of celebratory tradition when it comes to the reception. When it's my turn to have a Filipino wedding, the reception will certainly be something a little more grandiose.