Michael LyonsBy Michael Lyons —
Weddings in Indonesia are different than in the U.S. Each culture—and there are many—make Indonesian weddings unique. Still, with all that diversity, there are still many things in common.
They are a celebration, social event, and marriage commitment . Even for the less affluent, they are lavish. All are colorful and the sounds of ethnic music fill the air. The most lavish I’ve witnessed are sumatra weddings—I’ve been to few.
We have attended more than one neighborhood wedding, the one immediately below being the most recent. Two houses on both sides of the street, a small alley around the corner from our house were used for the Javanese celebration. Canopies made of fabric crisscrossed the street, which is probably no wider than 10’. The houses are seldom more than 5’ from the street.
The food was typical Indonesian and plentiful. I enjoyed meeting and greeting neighbors and getting more familiar with the neighborhood. They are good people—though not well-off, they certainly are happy.
The photos here are from four different weddings.
We have great neighbors. The lady next to Christina is the mother of the bride.
The food served was typical Indonesian, which is typically good, and typically spicy.
Indonesian weddings are always colorful.
No neighborhood wedding is complete without a band.
Sumatra style wedding—a lavish all day affair.
We met up with Christina’s brother Christo and his wife, Bintang.
Another Javanese wedding in the neighborhood. This one was setup in a vacant lot.
Check out the makeup. When I first saw the bride, I thought she had a mask on. The bride and groom stand around all day to accept good wishes and congratulations.
This group is Christinas classmates in journalism from her college. One of their daughters was married and we attended.
