Have you ever attend wedding?
Yes, you must did several times.
Then, have you been to a wedding of strangers, a couple who you don't know even their name?
Never? Nonsens to ask?
Well, I did. I did in Korea just a few days ago. Why not?
Korea, located just next to my home country Japan, seems to have much more open-minded system for wedding. I should say it more than most of other countries.
One day one of my friends asked me to attend a korean wedding ceremony(of course in korea) of a couple who I've never meet before. According to her, wedding in korea welcomes anybody who comes, friends or friends of friends, or even passsersby.... at that time I couldn't accept her invitation but the shocking fact stayed in my mind. After a few months in a conversation with another friend who had studied for one year in Korea, my question turned out to be truth. Attending a Wedding seems one of ''entertainment'' among young korean.
Is that possible for foreigner like me, indeed? If so, how does it come in detail? To know that I have to investigate this case by my own eyes. Fortuneately I have korean friend in hand. My outlook (very japanese) would see as korean but I'm not capable of korean, need a good navigator. Grasping my air-ticket, I headed to a 2-days excurtion
to Seoul.
My friend, K, chosed me one wedding in the largest Church in Seoul, Myon-Doung(明洞） Church. That was big enough, and good enough for my stage of investigation. At first, before enterring the ceremony, 'tis necessary to get a TICKET. Where could we get it? Buy ticket as usual, at a ticket station . just like at cinema , museum or amusement park. Crowds are gathering there so that you don't miss it anyway.
With the ticket we got into the church. The festivity itself was not that surprizing. Quite general nice western style wedding in the church, except there were crowds of middle-aged men(suppose they are peoples from company which the groom works) and cloths of the guests were very casual, some of them wear jeans. In fact, I was wearing a piece of nice sweater and shoes that I bought at Nandae-mun market(one of the biggest fashion market/南大門市場) last night. Sure that you don't need to prepare when you attend Korean wedding, not like the one in japan!! Very few women weres traditional dress, 치마 저고리(Chima jeogori), but the fact of several christian women wearing a veil made me realize that 30% (20%:protestant,10%:catholic) of korean believe in christianity, thought that this brand-new married couple must be "actual" christian. On the other hand, many in japan who get married in the church would be "fly-by-night christian"(they'd FLY abroad on honeymoon immediately).
After the christian ritual, it's time to take photos with the bride and bloom. Their friends got to snap a lot even if the couple's eyes are away from the viewfinder or stand away from us. They are just a background of us. The protagonist of the photo seems to have the owner of the camera.
For the last decades Japanese travelers had gained fame around the globe by taking pictures every other minutes when abroad, but now we might to pass the position to Korean. They're lovin' it (Mee, too). When you see Asian tourists who are taking picture so much, don't jump to a conclusion that they are japanese. Seeing them carefully, listening to their words, you might realize the slight differences between Japanese and Korean.
No matter where Korean are, abroad or at home, they do. I'd seen many "photographers" and "models" everywhere on the fashionable street in Seoul. Nearly all of them are couple. I guess they are boyfriend and girlfriend. Mostly the guy, photographer, snaps the model, his girlfriend. Beauty doesn't last (oh well, some could get plastic beauty forever. Aesthetic surgery is popular in Korea). We might preserve it in a right way on photo paper as they do.
Soon after this memorial photo time of christian style we move to another building, korean traditional ceremony are waiting for us. While the bride and groom are preparing for the next ceremony, friend K gave me a quick lecture over this tradition. According to him, in this ceremony the wedding couple exchange their cloths to traditional korean dress, and pay their compliments to their parents with deep bow (deeper than japanese one) . Placed some decollated special foods on the table , the essential foods would be chestnuts and jujube. The broom's parents take some of the food and throw to the couple. The bride's dress has a long sleeve and the broom hold the end of cloth to catch the foods. The number of the food indicate the number of child they'll have, and chestnut as a symbol of girl, jujube as a symbol of boy. Plus the bride and broom eat these stuff in the bridal night. Yes, this is one kind of fortunetelling or making a wish ceremony for having baby.
Unfortunately all the visitors is allowed to enter this ritual, it's only for their parents and couple and other few persons such as aunt or sister so that we could catch only a glimpse of it from the corridor, although most of visitors seem not interested in this ritual. Perhaps they are waiting for something else.... hungry?
Time has come. It passed 12 o'clock, 'tis time for lunch. So am I , hungry. Showing the ticket(this ticket may be just for food), we got into the floor. The moment I entered, I was unspeakable. The meal at wedding was served buffet style!!!
I'm not saying that i don't like buffet style, but had supposed much more stiff and formal dish. Must popular wedding cuisine in japan comes in French(if traditional, japanese food), seated on a certain place, not to move to other place to talk to someone else. Have to behave onself.
Here in korea, it's possible. That we can eat what we want as much as we like, having choices such as korean food, japanese SASHIMI(chef serve it in front of us!), or even turkish kebab!!!! Imagine how happy I was there. Couldn't help wishing happiness to the wedding couple....oh, is this strategy of korean wedding? People can drop by the wedding at ease, eat at ease, nothing should be worry about, so that blessings occur to anyone as a natural result?
Some of my friends have already married, I went the wedding. It was nice to see them, but there were so many things to care about. You have to clear a dress code (no jeans), admission charge (approximately 200euro for young) and time (in korea:2hours, in japan: vague, maybe around a half of the day). One japanese 30 something guy said to me that he'd already told his acquaintances about being busy, not to invite him their wedding. Imagine when people gets 30, gets more acquaintances and the invitation must be more. These should be welcomed. But his wallet wouldn't welcome the invitations.
But if it's in korea?
Everyone could enjoy the wedding wishing the couple's happiness?
In everything, things have two phases, good and bad. The only unfavable thing I may FEAR over korean style wedding is inside the carefree system. IF your not-invited ex-boyfriend (girlfriend) appeared in sudden? This situation might become the beginning of another DRAMA, or soap opera.*** (But this also could be exciting moment, for audience).
Remember korean TV drama is famous for its dramatic happenings. I like attending the korean wedding but YOU be careful when having it.
***note-- Over a couple of years there are Korean TV drama boom throughout Japan. Most of the enthusiasts are middle aged women, great lovers of soap opera.
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