As you may have noticed, it seems that both my desire to write and my muse have deserted me on this trip. I guess that my first month here was all about meeting family and friends, experiencing the Jewish holidays, attending Racheli's wedding, and just living everyday Israeli life. But now, after a long hiatus, i am at least in front of my little Hackintosh again, and typing something...
Racheli's wedding was something special. It is obviously the first Jewish wedding i have attended, and to be honest i didn't know what to expect. I just knew that it would be relatively big. With over 600 people invited, it was certainly the biggest i had ever been to. Unfortunately, Didi had started to feel ill the evening before, and while driving to the venue in a 40 degree car, with me sweating from every pore in my body, Adi was asking to put up the windows because she was cold! Not a good start… Luckily the fever subsided as the excitement grew, and she pulled out some reserve energy from somewhere to make it through the evening.
And oh what an evening it was! The food was amazing, the alcohol plentiful, the people beautiful and the excitement palpable. It was more like a concert, or a massive party than what i have always known as a wedding. I'll give it to the Israeli's - damn they know how to celebrate! For me to not only see it all, but to experience it as part of the family, was something else again. The official photographers were more like paparazzi, and as a 'partner of the sister of the bride', i kept finding myself the subject of the videocamera's and flashes. For someone who likes to stay out of the spotlight, it was a bit intimidating at times! But with enough alcohol under my belt, i was soon in the thick of things, dancing traditional Yemmen dances, boogieing with the bride, and simply enjoying the excitement.
Before we knew it, it was 3 am and time to go.. Didi's fever kicked in again as soon as we got in the car - at least she made it through the night!
