On June 18^th my host sister, Nicoleta, married Grigore.  I had been to a Moldovan/American nunta (wedding) last summer when a PCV married a Moldovan, so I had an idea of what to expect from a Moldovan nunta.  This nunta lasted much longer than any I had ever been to. 

The day started with a hair dresser and make-up artist coming to the house to do first Nicoleta’s, then my host mother’s and other family member’s hair.  The house was a flurry of activity as more people began to arrive, food was being prepared in our outdoor kitchen and four women and a little girl were getting ready for the wedding.  At around 3:30 PM the photographers arrived to take pictures of the bride.  At some point Grigore, the groom, arrived and several cars left taking the bride, groom, and others to have more wedding pictures taken.  Unfortunately, in their haste, they forgot to include my host mom in one of those cars.  Instead, we took part in the masa (a party that involves a table full of food and drink) that had been prepared (by a woman who had been hired to cook for the pre- and post-wedding masas) for the remaining people at the house.

So, at around 4:30 PM, I sat down to Round One of food and drink.  Moldovans love to celebrate and their celebrations are a marathon of food, drink and dancing.  Below are pictures of my host mom toasting the couple as well as the spread of food for the “small” masa.

The cars of people came back for my host mom, myself, and Marina (the girl my host mom takes care of) and we left for the ballroom where the wedding ceremony and reception were held at around 5:30 PM.  The guests started arriving at 6:PM and waited in line outside of the building with flowers and gifts.  First, the parents welcome their children (the bride and groom) into the building, and then the parents with the bride and groom welcome the guests.  There are no bridesmaids or groomsmen.  There are the nanasi, which are the godparents of one of the couple who stands next to them.

At around 7:00 PM a woman came to do the civil service.  In Moldova, there are two parts to the wedding ceremony and they tend to be done on separate days.  In this case the civil service, which is the one recognized by the state, was done on the same day as the reception.  The church/religious service will be done in several weeks.  There are cases where the civil service is done years before the reception is held because the couple wants to save up money to do a proper wedding reception.  After the civil service, the guests all entered the ballroom and the party officially begun. 

There is a tradition in Moldova where the bride and groom each hold on to the side a giant kolac (a circular loaf of bread) and pull it apart.  Whoever gets the larger half is the “head of the household.”  When Grigore got the larger half, Nicoleta’s family said that sometimes the bread doesn’t always prove true, meaning they all belive Nicoleta will be the head of the household. J  After the kolac is torn apart, each guest gets a small piece to eat.  Now, time for Round Two of eating that began around 8:00 PM.

I have been to quite a few masas in my two years in Moldova so I’ve learned a few things: 

1. never eat bread because it fills you up too fast. 
2. don’t drink your shot of cognac all at once, take small sips so you don’t get too drunk.
3. take small bites and chew slower.  People tell you to eat or don’t think  you like the food if you have nothing on your plate, so you must eat or have something on your plate at all times.
4. It’s ok to say you don’t want anymore for now.

 After the first two rounds of food, I was already pretty full.  Sometimes even the best made intentions of not overeating go by the wayside.  Luckily, people started to hora around 9:30 PM, which is one of my favorite things to do at a Moldovan celebration.  The hora is the traditional dance of Moldova and is done in a circle where people hold hands and do simple steps while in that circle.  In this picture, you can see three separate circles of people dancing the hora.

At around 11:00 PM came Round Three of the food.

After this round of food, came the time to give the money to the bride and groom.  The traditional way of doing this is for each guest to toast the couple and say the amount of money they are giving them.  The more modern way is putting the money in the card given to you by the couple and not having to say the amount given.  For this wedding the nanasi (godparents) went around to each table to collect our envelopes.  Each table had one person who said words of encouragement on behalf of the table.  More money is given at a Moldovan wedding than any I’ve been to in the United States.  I gave 1000 lei, which is around $90, much more than anything I’ve done previously.  This amount was smaller than most.  The parents gave $1000 each.  I was amazed by the amount of money that people gave in the name of tradition.

12:30 PM Round Four of the food.  This time the traditional foods of Moldova: Mamaliga with brinza and meat and sarmale.

Good thing there is lots of dancing.

Then, at around 1:30 AM the nanasi changed the bride and groom into a married couple.  This is done by having the couple sit together in a chair while the nanasi tie an apron and head scarf on the bride and put a had on the groom.  They then place the linens they have bought for the couple around their shoulders.  Next, the parents put the things they bought at the couples feet and the linens around their shoulders.  This continues until all the guests have presented the couple with their gifts.  These gifts are on top of the money they were given.  Below is a picture of the gifts and linen that the couple received.

Finally, came Round Five of food, the cake.  Like in the US, the bride and groom cut the cake.  Unlike the US, they feed the first bites to the nanasi, who are standing next to them.  Then everyone takes a piece.  You can imagine how full of food I was.

I left the party around 3:30 AM to help several relatives take the gifts home.  I finally went to sleep around 5:15 AM, as the sun was rising.  At 9:30 AM I was woken up and told to come outside where we had yet more food to eat.  I ate enough food to last me a couple days.

Tara Oliva

EE Volunteer