Most of you know in a previous life I photographed people and was occasionally paid for it. It was a fun creative outlet for me that honed my photography skills and funded a portion of the adoptions of two precious kiddos.
I was a portrait photographer (families, kids, seniors, etc. - not sports teams) but weddings were hands down my favorite thing to photograph. I was always a bundle of nerves leading up to the big day. It was a ton of work to make a shot list, create a schedule of the day given time limits and transportation requirements, and then scout the best locations for portraits given the time of day, with back up plans in case of poor weather. But the details were always so beautiful, and it was such a privilege to document such an important event, it more than offset the stress and nerves.
Kentucky had no shortage of beautiful venues from historic horse farms to old stone churches, rollings hills, and beautiful columned mansions. But it was really the emotions of a wedding day that I relished. For the most part they were extremely happy days, with ample doses of sentimentality and nostalgia thrown in. Christian weddings were the best, when the couple truly honored God in their ceremony and He was a part of the day, and not just an afterthought, from the music and homily, to the prayers and toasts at the reception. It challenged me on a regular basis to live into my wedding vows and be grateful for Nathan and the wonderful family I came from and married into. The more weddings I photographed, the more symbolism and traditions I got to see incorporated into weddings as well. It was interesting to see what aspects of tradition couples kept and what new things they incorporated into their special day. No two were ever the same.
Imagine, then, the opportunity to attend my first Albanian wedding. For months we have been anticipating the wedding of Roshi's daughter, and much like weddings in the States, planning starts months in advance. It didn't take long to learn that most aspects of weddings in Albania differ from American weddings down to the process of engagement.
In Albania, the wedding is a multi-day event, the length of which varies, depending upon whether you are the groom or the bride! I shared in a previous post that the groom's family celebrates with several nights' worth of dancing at their home to celebrate the arrival of a new daughter. For the bride's family, the celebration isn't nearly as long, but no less tiring.
The first day the bride dresses in her gown and will frequently have most of her professional portraits taken. It's now popular to go to the botanical gardens or the beach or a castle/monument for these photographs. Come evening, she will return to her family without the groom and the entire community is invited to come and share their congratulations with the bride and her family. For Blerta, Friday night was the night the community was invited to visit...
We walked up the hill to their family home, following the sound of the music and were greeted with this sight:
(these were all taken on our iPod)
When Ellie saw Blerta standing in the corner of the room to receive her visitors, Ellie was positively giddy.
When Ellie saw Xheni, Blerta's sister in her bridesmaids dress, Ellie started vocalizing her desire to be a bridesmaid someday (nevermind that I told her she'd have to be a lot older to be a bridesmaid).
Nathan and Reni with Blerta's father and brother
I think it's hilarious how I captured Ellie's excitment over receiving a chocolate treat!
Then Xheni came over and told me, "We have another bridesmaids dress, I'm going to take Ellie and let her wear it!" Ellie was over-the-moon excited, as you can see below.
The open house, so to speak, is an opportunity for the entire community to share their congratulations since the wedding banquet is usually only for family and close friends. I think it's a great way to include everyone in the fun. There was a DJ playing in the courtyard and those who wanted to dance could dance, or simply sit on a bench and visit with their neighbors.
Ellie with Pamela
We stayed about 45 minutes, then had Ellie change back into her dress before excusing ourselves around 9PM to get the kids to bed.
The next day, Nathan and I would go and attend the bride's family banquet and the kids would stay with a sitter. Thanks to the open house Friday night, they were satisfied that they didn't miss much by not coming with us Saturday. Check back soon to see all the photos, including photos of the multi-course banquet! The amount of food was rediculous! ;-)
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