La Boda de Elena

Last weekend was the very exciting and long-awaited wedding of Elena. There's been a lot of questions about it, so here's a short description with some pictures:

I helped set-up the hall during the day, mopping, moving tables, slicing cake.... I even learned how to tie balloons! After all these years of thinking it was a secret talent of my mom's!

We used a reception hall upstairs in the clinic for the ceremony and reception

The cake - I was shocked when one of the girls pretended to eat some until everyone told me it was a fake cake used as a prop for pictures. They thought it was pretty funny that I had thought it was real....

Ada taught me to tie balloons.

The wedding was scheduled to start at 5:30. We were still decorating in our jeans at 5:50, and nobody had arrived. I rushed home to get ready and was back by 6:20, just in time to see Elena walk down the aisle (for the first time). A stereo blared out the wedding march as Elena went to meet her groom, and they both sat down at a table with a judge. While the three worked out the legal side of marriage, the "congregation" listened to music on the stereo and chatted. After about half an hour, the wedding march played again and Elena walked back down the aisle to a pastor waiting at the other side of the room. Here the bride and groom exchanged vows and had a religious blessing. The congregation tried to listen to music and continue chatting until the pastor glared at everyone to hush. After the final kiss, the congregation clapped and cheered, the wedding party gathered next to the cake for photos, and the reception began!

El novio y la novia

The clinic colleages wait for our photo with the bride and groom

Clinic girls! (None of us caught the bouquet)

A light fare of Dominican appetizers was served during the reception: empanadas, shish kabobs, dumplings... Mmm. The newly married couple socialized while background music played on the stereo. Surprisingly, there was no dancing, and most guests left soon after the food was finished. I had been looking forward to my first try at merengue and bachata, but it was not to be. Now I'm seriously looking into dance classes!

The wedding was one of the first social events here where I felt like I really belonged. I knew the bride and groom and was able to congratulate them, and I had all my colleagues to hang out with. Despite the lack of dancing, I had a great time and feel so fortunate to have been invited. Yay! Felicidades, Elena!