Weddings and photos

I was invited to two weddings last weekend. It's wedding season at the moment so they are happening all over the place. The first one was for a friend. You are sent the invitation and put some money in the envelope as a gift to the bride and groom. How much you give depends on how well you know the couple but also where the wedding is being held - if it's at a hotel you give more because it has cost more. The day before the wedding the bride was panicking because she hadn't been able to find a photographer, so someone had suggested me. So I became their photographer - so just a bit of pressure there then!!!!!

It gave me some wonderful photo opps but I was so worried that there would be some dust on the lens or something dire would happen that I couldn't relax. They came out alright though so I'll post them up soon.

The bride is at home, serene and waiting for her future husband, the grooms party maraudes it's way alcoholically and noisily towards the house, where they are greeted by girls holding silver and gold chains. They are supposed to pay their way through but at each of the weddings I've attended, they pay their way through the first couple then barge through the rest.

A baasi is then held where people wish one another good luck and yet more alcohol is consumed. Then the bride and groom head for the bedroom, together with the photographers!!!!!!! They have a heap of pictures on the bed, blessing the bed, kissing one another, standing on the bed - holding his sword! and then the family come in for the parents of the bride, parents of the groom, etc. pics! Most surreal. When I asked the bride how she was enjoying married life she blushed profusely and became really coy. Of course for them the major thing about married life to start with is the consumation of the marriage - so broadly I had inadvertantly asked her whether she was enjoying sex!!!!!

I had a call from my landlady earlier this week. She wanted to know whether I was home as someone wanted to view the house as she was selling it - and they were outside at that moment! I was a touch surprised to find out that the house was being sold. So I'm househunting again. I've been offered some land (for free!) on which I could build a very small house, but this doesn't appeal. We'll see how things pan out. I'm sure something will work out somehow.

Anyway, just heading for a wedding and then a festival. I'll post the latest pics soon.