A Wonderful Wedding!

Being in Korea and participating in the wedding of our son Jordan to our new daughter in law Young Ju was truly one of the most wonderful and memorable events of our lives.  Although there were many similarities to wedding customs here in the United States, there were also a number of differences that were a delight to experience....and it turns out that we were not the only ones who felt that way.  The new couple received many comments afterwards about how interesting their ceremony was; so much so that many stayed for its entirety.  It turns out that it is perfectly acceptable in Korean culture to come to the wedding Hall, drop off your gift and then proceed directly to the wedding banquet; how much you choose to watch of the ceremony is up to you and totally optional....but this bi-cultural wedding kept people glued to their seats!  Here are some photos and comments on some of what made this wedding unique for us:




 

Before the ceremony began, Young Ju sat in a special room where her friends and family could come and have photographs taken with her.



 Meanwhile, other photo ops were taking place in the main hall; here's Jordan with his wonderful mother and father-in-law!

It turns out that the mothers of the bride and groom not only get to wear traditional Korean clothing but have a number of ceremonial functions to perform.  Here, our bilingual officiant coaches us on our bows....and then Jordan joins us as we practice where to stand as he waits for his bride to join him.  The rehearsal was held 1 1/2 hours before the ceremony commenced....and the bride did not participate. 

 

 

 

Yes, there was a ring bearer and flower girl....

a very special niece and nephew!              

 

Meanwhile, John waited patiently for the 
procession to begin...

 

....which it soon did, starting off with the mom's...

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

It is not common to have an officiant who performs parts of the ceremony in English as well as Korean; he was awesome!  Also a bit unusual: John and I had an opportunity to pronounce a blessing on Young Ju and Jordan.

Towards the end of the ceremony, the newlyweds took turns bowing to each set of parents.  Wow!

 

The conclusion of the ceremony looked familiar....

 

 

 

...and then afterwards there was a traditional ceremony for the family (brother and sister in law are sitting on the right).  I could do a whole other blog post on the second ceremony as well!

 

 

Congratulations Jordan and Young Ju!  We are truly blessed to have both of you in our family!