I was about to write a post about how we saved money, while making my daughter's wedding that bit more personal, by collecting bougainvillea petals to use as confetti. The idea came from close friend Netia, who had done the same for her daughter's wedding and I collected most of the petals pictured in the baskets above from the bougainvillea bushes that Netia planted over 25 years ago. But I've been diverted by a wedding that is going on close to my village house. It started last night in the groom's garden- no music, just constant drumming and shooting - all night, sometimes single shots, sometimes, repeated fire, building up to a crescendo at about 7 am this morning with 10 minutes of constant gunfire. Needless to say I am short on sleep and the dog is close to a nervous breakdown. At dusk tonight, the drums gave way to a band but the shooting is still going on. I've just met a neighbour on his way home who told me that the family have spent 10,000TL on bullets and that the ground around the wedding is littered with spent cartridges, and the 300 cases of rakı that have been bought for the event. This family are not rich, they sold a piece of land to pay for the festivities and the young couple will be moving into a rented flat after the marriage - a flat which could have been bought for less than the cost of the sold land. We had free petals, they have spent bullets - I'm sure both of us think the other is bonkers.
Apart from the dreadful noise, which happens frequently in our village, and the effect on the dogs, I assume these are real bullets? At least I believe they are used in our village. One of the reasons I don't attend village weddings. It's a tragic accident waiting to happen. And what a bloody waste of money that could have been better spent. Give me free petals anyday...not bonkers but completely sane
ReplyDeleteI hope they aren't real.
DeleteSheer waste...and all to keep up appearances - when everyone in a village knows how much everyone else has...
ReplyDeleteGive me the petals any day.
I also can't bear to see money thrown away
DeleteI am with you - it is difficult to understand what makes some people tick.
ReplyDeleteIt seems the poorer one is, the more must be sacrificed for show.
DeleteB to B, That is sooo sad. This foolishness is not restricted to Turkey, though. The extravagant wedding madness has been marketed worldwide and all of the stress involved in wasting that much money is a sure way to stress the marriage as well. Give us petals and loving friends, too. (BTW, we used to give tranquilizers to our dogs for July 4 - doggie downers we called them. They worked pretty well.)
ReplyDeleteJust mention the word 'wedding' and prices triple.
Delete. . anything that can be commodified will be - it's all about profit even on the boxes of what, these days, is almost certainly the much cheaper blank cartridges. Well done you and yours for bucking the trends.
ReplyDeleteI hope they are blanks
DeleteOh, makes me so sad, in many levels. Lovingly collected petals and intimacy for us too, anytime, hope Jake is recovering well xx
ReplyDeleteI barricade him into my bedroom every night , it stops him barking too much.
DeleteThe contrast couldn't be starker, could it? Heaven one day, Hell the next. I hope it's all done dusted now.
ReplyDeleteThere will be another on the way I'm sure
DeleteThe same thing goes on in the UK without the guns 20,000 pounds for a 5 hour (white wedding-supposedly virgin)wedding then off to a rented house or flat and a whole load of HP to furnish it, all show. It is the same all over the world, India being the most extreme out to impress the families expensive wedding cases I have ever seen.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting David, I'm glad my daughter saw sense and didn't want the whole 'blow the budget' wedding. Mine however cost less than a hundred quid.
DeleteMany a sleepless night around Bodrum
ReplyDeleteEarplugs - the only answer
Delete