Island weddings

Added: 01/13/2006

Weddings in Hawaii are frequently held outdoors on the beach, in a tropical garden or even in a boat. At Hawaiian weddings, flower garlands, known as leis, are traditionally placed around the necks of the bride and the groom. Leis symbolize love and respect, and they are created of some of the island’s most beautiful and fragrant flowers. Each lei is made of forty or fifty fresh flowers, tied with a colorful ribbon. The Hawaiian Wedding Song, made by Elvis Presley famous in the movie “Blue Hawaii”, is almost always a part of the wedding service.

The couple’s names in Hawaii may be engraved onto their wedding rings. Hawaii wedding bands, bearing the couple’s name, are exchanged. The name “kuuipo”, meaning sweetheart, is a favorite choice for the bride. Both the bride and groom are dressed in white. A red or colored sash is tied around the groom’s waist.

While many Caribbean Island weddings borrow from the customs and traditions of the U.S. in their wedding ceremonies, the peculiar blend of African and European cultures, which is found nowhere else all over the world, gives the Caribbean Islands a flavor of their own when it comes to wedding traditions.

Although Caribbean wedding customs vary from island to island, it is common for the bride and groom to dress in their finest clothes and to walk from either the bride’s house or the groom’s house to the church, while the church bells ring, announcing the wedding to the whole island. Onlookers comment on the bride’s and groom’s clothes as the couple walks along the street to the church.

Traditionally guests were invited to the wedding by word-of-mouth, with only a few honored guests receiving hand-written invitations. However, a Caribbean Island wedding doesn’t stand on ceremony, and anyone who shows up, invited or not, is welcome at the wedding.

There is no such thing as a best man at a Caribbean Island wedding. The bride’s father or often both of her parents escort her down the aisle with her face hidden by a veil. At the end of the ceremony, the groom lifts the veil and kisses his new bride to the cheering of family and friends.

A Caribbean Island wedding reception goes on all night, with traditional steel-drum island music, lots of sweet but potent rum punch, wild dancing and many toasts to the health and happiness of the new couple. Among many wonderful hand-made gifts, traditional at Caribbean weddings, there are exquisite hand-made quilts and home-made furniture.

The food at a typical island reception reflects the uniqueness of the Islands. Where else in the world would you find curried goat, spicy chicken jerky, fried plantains and conch fritters at a wedding feast?

An Island wedding cake is something unique. Tradition calls for a Black Cake with the recipe, handed down from mother to daughter and improved by each generation. The basic ingredients of an Island wedding cake include a pound of flour, a pound of brown sugar, a pound of butter, a pound of glazed cherries, raisins, prunes, currants, and a dozen fresh eggs. The cake is traditionally served with a Hard Rum Sauce, and all of the dried fruits are soaked in rum in a crock pot from two weeks to one year.

After the reception the newlyweds often spend a week in seclusion at home, provided by the groom, or they may travel to a nearby island and spend a glorious week together before starting their new life together.

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