Marrying Traditions - A Unique Party

First dance!

Conga line!

Congolese and American wedding traditions don't have a lot in common, but that didn't stop Stro and Serguei (Momo) from trying for a unqiue blend. And they got a great result. Despite bureaucratic holdups that delayed the actual, official marriage until a date soon (we hope), a great time was had by all celebrating this twosome.

Every the smallest guests wore
pagne! 

Chela, Serguei, Paty

We were really fortunate that several representatives of Serguei's family and friends could travel to DRC from ROC for the festivities. In all there were about 15, all of whom sported some version of the wedding pagne, or special occasion fabric, a Congolese tradition Stro and I embraced happily. Of special importance were two of his sisters, Chela and Paty. We housed most of them in the apartments or homes of gracious friends.

Stro with hosts Kimball

And then there were our fabulous hosts, Richard and Rama Kimball. Their big garden looked gorgeous and Rama especially master-minded the food and produced The. Best. Beef. Brochettes. Ever. toward the end of the party. This was after hours of delicious chicken dishes, a very special beef and rice dish served only at weddings, saka-saka, chikwanga, and all the accompaniments. The there were cupcakes in the pagne colors to boot.

We skipped the goats and other dowry exchange items featured in traditional weddings but the principals did exhange rings in front of the group gathered.This was where it was obvious to all that these two are made for each other. They had no pre-planned vows but both warmed to the occasion and spoke beautifully to each other in front of us all. Some people said they cried. I was distracted in the moment by the perspiration dripping off my hair and running down the sides of my face and legs.

Stro and Serguei

Stro and Rilla

And it was the hottest day/evening of my month in Kin. How hot was it? Well, the pictures fall into "before our hair got wet" and "after our hair was dripping." Here are two from the "before" group, taken about 5 p.m.

After that, all bets were off for everyone. I drank several bottles of water, which probably only made matters worse. A breeze developed about 9:30 so it seemed safe to drink champagne then.

Dancing to the 8-piece rhumba band led by friends Poppy and Sara was virtually continuous once they got started. This included some very set dancing routines to certain Congolese popular hits and also a lot of free form movement (my best kind). When the music from Serguei's mother's village was played the whole family descended on the stage to dance to amazingly fast rhythms. I was thinking that for me and my cohorts, "That Old Time Rock 'n Roll" would havehad the same impact.

The official party ended about 10:30. Most of the ROC visitors and some friends joined an after party at a local club for every more celebrating. I chose to go home, get out of my wet dress, take a shower, and sleep. Feeling happy and grateful and hoping to be able to welcome Stro and Serguei to Vermont this summer with the children.