Leo's Wedding (Korean Wedding)

The co-owner of the bar I visit, as well as my co-workers, got married this past weekend. Although he owns the bar, I do consider him a friend as well. He was kind enough to invite all of the foreigners that frequent his bar. It was a beautiful wedding, but a bit strange, at least according to my Western Ideals of a wedding.

The ceremony itself was a bit different. First, the parents go up and light a candle. Instead of saying the vows to each other, they shout them out to the crowd. After that, they pay respect to their parents. All in all it would have been about a 20 minute wedding without the flare show. People talk during the wedding and a few people were on their cell phones. It seemed like most people were more excited about the buffet afterwards instead of the actually wedding itself. I must admit, the food was quite delicious.

After the wedding, we went back to Ju-Rok, the name of the bar, in a van Honey had rented to take us all to the wedding. Since they owned the bar, it was an open bar. My goal for the month of May is not to drink any alcohol and I sure picked the wrong time to do it. While I did end up drinking, I only had 3 shots of beer with Leo. Everyone had a great time and there were a few fun games. One involved hiding 3 peanuts on the groom and the bride had 3 minutes to find them all. Someone explained to me that it goes back to the tradition of arranged marriages and it was to show that the bride and groom are okay with touching each other in front of friends. I ended up carrying some girl home I just met with the help of another guy from the bar and helped a co-worker find his way home when, after calling him, he told me he was lost. Overall it was a great time. I do hope in the future I am able to see a traditional Korean ceremony at some point.

(The group of foreigners before the wedding)

(Honey in the background, Sol-gi and Leo)

(Sol-ji and Leo)

\

(Only bridesmaids, no best-man)

(The bride and groom pay respects to their parents and say thank you)

(Leo is a class act. He completely bowed to the ground to thank everyone who came. He also did the same thing when thanking his father and mother. A true sign of respect.)

(Since he owns a bar, what the wedding be like without a little flair?)

(Exchanging of the rings)

(Again, perhaps because most of his friends are bartenders, Leo got a little surprise)

(Thank you other bartenders, those holding the fireworks in the background)

(A photo of the families)

(A photograph of all the extended family. The photographers took a picture with friends but I have no idea how to get one of those pictures.)

(Honey brought a box of Jager to celebrate)

(The biggest part of the wedding, at least in Korea, is the food. This was our table.)

(A toast to the new bride and groom)