Tanzanian Wedding

Last night Waziri, our second-in-command at COMMIT, got married! They had a muslim wedding at the mosque in the afternoon, and then a hugely fancypants reception, Western-style, in the evening. Anna and I got there about 8:15 because of traffic, and there weren't many folks there. Congolese party music was going and a gaggle of older ladies shuffled around the dance floor, their grim party faces on.

From Waziri Wedding

The decor was all blue and white bunting and flashing plastic lights and these remarkable vases filled with blue liquid and topped with plastic flowers. You can maybe see the huge white thrones up on the dias. No expense was spared, and the carbonated beverages were flowing. Two cokes later at 10:30 no one had showed up but the traditional dancers from Waziri's village down south in Tanzania, who had long crazy hair, not quite dreadlocks. I asked Margaret, the office manager, why they wore their hair that way. "Oh, you know - artists," she sniffed. "They like to be...different."

I think we got some soup and then things started happening:

From Waziri Wedding

From Waziri Wedding

From Waziri Wedding

Then they called me up to be one of the five openers of the "champagne". The three men all tilted their bottles back and forth for five minutes before opening; the lady next to me did not. The men proudly spilled champagne all over the floor (which made for a sticky time later, I can attest) and us girls smiled, popped the corks, and rolled our eyes.

Then they asked me in Swahili to serve the bride and groom but of course I didn't understand so there was this awkward moment before they realized they had to say it again in English.

After the cake cutting, the embarrassing sing-along by the MC to the Lionel Richie song, the feeding of cake to not only the bride and groom but the best man, maid of honor, and the junior bridesmaid and groomsman, the first dance, and family introductions, the dancing began. We'd had some vegetable soup earlier in the evening but it was clear there would be no more food coming for a good bit, and it was 11. We danced our way up to Waziri to say goodbye, and he was so happy. It was great.