I went to a wedding today, the fourth I've been to during my time in China. Chinese weddings share common characterstics with weddings that I've seen back home, but there are also a few big differences. To cite one of the biggest differences, the 'wedding' takes place in three stages and on different dates, which are usually combined into the same day in other countries. The first stage is officially registering your marriage at a government office. The second stage, which may be several weeks or even months later, is to get some wedding photographs taken. Not the snaps taken outside the church that the folks at home are accustomed to, but a day spent in a photographic studio (with a possible excursion to some nearby scenic spot) taking pictures in styles more often seen in glossy magazines. The photos are available about 4 weeks later, after being photoshopped-up to the desired standard. The third and final stage of the wedding (possibly another few weeks or months later) is the wedding reception where all the family and friends get together for a big celebratory meal. Festivities ensue, the father of the bride has his cheeks covered in red makeup, everybody drinks too much baijiu and then cries. Then we all go back to work.
One thing that I find a little odd about all this is that most couples do not consider themselves married until they have had a wedding feast, even though they may have been legally married several months (in extreme cases, years) previously.
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