Wealthy Ugandan Wedding

My "go-to" outfit when I am not prepared to be invited to anything fancy, a sarong tied into a dress.

I was invited to a Ugandan wedding by a friend of a friend. Culturally, even if you are not directly invited, you are welcome to come to a wedding, especially if you are “mazungu”.  This wedding happened to be the most extravagant one that most Ugandans had ever heard of or seen.  It was extravagant to our Western standards as well.  It took place in a rural area outside of Kibale NP where people are living minimally. We did not go to the 3 hour service, but the reception party was 10 hours long and went long into the night, so we heard, we stayed for 4 hours.  The celebration was filled with guest speakers, women’s dance troops in traditional costumes, a brass band, a $400 5-tiered cake, with 6 cakes on the side topped with whole mangos.  The bride changed 4 times, one dress fancier than the next and a different color.  Her 7 bridesmaids were chosen by same height, build, and complexion.  There was a lot of parading around the field that was surrounded by 4 large tents which held over 500 people. 

Cake ceremony

The bride and groom

traditional food

Now that I look closely, I wonder of mama goat was painted tan? The gift line begins.

This shows only half of the set-up; there were 4 large tents

They provided at least 4 buffet lines to serve traditional food, including matoke (a plantain in mashed potato-like form), rice, ground nut sauce (my ultimate favorite), some animal’s foot- cooked, peas in curry, potato casserole and other veggies and meat.  Everyone’s plates were piled high.  At one point, when the cake was ready to be cut, fancy strings of lights and sparklers were lit. A British lodge owner and friend popped champagne in front of the crowd, and even a bubble maker was turned on. It felt like 4^th of July!  Then the gift line began and people came out of the “woodwork” to give presants and money.  The first gift was a family of healthy color-coded goats – a mother who was black and tan and her two offspring, one black, one tan. I imagine these goats were bred specifically for this moment.

Me, Caroline and Ronan dressed up for the occasion. Since I was not expecting to be going to a wedding while I was volunteering in Kibale NP, I made a sarong into a dress.  Ronan bought a really nice shirt from a Ugandan friend, and Caroline bought material at the market and found a talented seamstress to make her a wonderful dress, who charged her $12.  It was a fun, cultural experience, and funny at times!