Greek Weddings and Traditions now has a fan page on Facebook.
Just search: greekweddingsandtraditions the next time you log onto Facebook and become a fan!
I look forward to reading your comments and opinions in the discussions forum.
See you there.
I love weddings. I have always loved weddings and now i finally get to plan my own wedding!
It’s been just a few weeks since he popped the big question and now we are finally engaged! We’ll we are not ‘officially’ engaged yet since we haven’t had the rings blessed or had any kind of engagement party but we are getting married!
I am so excited. I have never been this excited about anything before. There are so many things to do and prepare for and so many decisions to make.
My wedding is going to be a great source of inspiration for this blog and i can’t wait to write about all of the new topics i have been thinking about.
Already i have been confronted with some interesting issues like:
- Which hand should I put my engagement ring on?
- Should we have an engagement party?
- What about the ‘logies’? Is this different to an engagement?
- How many bridesmaids should i have?
- Can i have married friends as my bridesmaids?
- And how many Koumbari should we have?
There are so many decisions to make and different people tell me different things about how things should be done. I know that this wedding is our wedding and i know that we should be able to decide whatever we want. Right?
Well, i also know that this is not always the case, especially with Greek families. In most Greek weddings, the whole family gets involved and it is not always the bride and groom making the decisions.
So what and who is right? What is the right thing to do and who should be making all the decisions? I’m not sure of the answers to these questions just yet but i think that i am about to find out.
I will keep you posted on my wedding plans and my controversial decisions.
BANG BANG WEDDING – A MOVIE SHOWING AT THE GREEK FILM FESTIVAL
Bang Bang Wedding is a movie showing at the Greek Film Festival in Brisbane tonight. Here is the blurb from the Greek Film Festival’s Website:
‘Starring Melbourne’s own Alex Dimitriades and directed by a New Yorker also of Greek heritage, Bang Bang Wedding is a fast-paced, light-hearted and stylish road-trip set against a spectacular backdrop in Crete.
Ilias (Alex Dimitriades) and Marina (Faye Xila) exchange vows without a hitch, but when they set off for the reception, a small yet important typo on the invitation ensures whatever can go wrong will go wrong. A collision causes amnesia for one guest, with only a veterinarian available for treatment, while others become embroiled in a little illegal activity and gatecrash a party of a very different nature. “It’s an invitation to taste a modern/tradition Greek wedding, starting at the altar and evolving into a crazy ride on the way to the reception.”
Greek Film Centre Warnings: Mild coarse language Cast: Alex Dimitriades, Faye Xila, Hrisa Ropa, Giorgos Karamihos, Betty Maggira, Vilma Tsakiri, Hristos Biros, Takis Hrisikakos About the Director: Born and reared in the USA, Christine Crokos studied film at USC Cinema School and worked with Warner Bros Studios, Copper Media and Runaway Editing. Bang Bang Wedding is her first feature film.’
I am looking forward to watching the film.
I found this article on how to Survive a Greek Mother In-Law by Carrie Klepzig and i thought it would be fun to share. Check out the original post at: http://www.ehow.com/how_2117418_survive-greek-mother-inlaw.html
How to Survive a Greek Mother In-Law
Congratulations. You have just married into a fun, dynamic and probably very large family. You have married a Greek. The head of the household in theory is the father, however, in reality is the mother that makes and breaks the rules in a traditional Greek home. There are a few things that you will need to know and remember to survive your new very loving, yet very intrusive mother in-law.
Step 1
The first thing you must remember is that you will never be good enough for her son or daughter. Her children are her life and she expects nothing but the best for them and from them. Once you acknowledge that you are merely a second best because Christ himself or the Virgin Mary were unavailable for marriage, the rest should be easy. Once married please know that you are now Greek yourself, regardless of your DNA, if you did not want to become Greek, you should not have married one, according to your new mother in-law
Step 2
Answer the phone when she calls, preferably the first time she calls. This phone call will occur when she wakes up. It does not matter that you are still sleeping, she will call to make sure that her child did not die in the middle of the night. Failing to answer the phone by the third phone call will result in her calling every hospital in town, thus making her even more excitable and angry when you finally do answer the phone.
Step 3
We are lucky to live in a world of technology. Cell phones, computers, blackberries, etc., are all mechanisms that make a Greek child accessible at all hours in every part of the globe. Your mother in-law will keep the numbers and email addresses of every one of her children tucked away in her wallet. Therefore, you cannot hide. She will find you. Answer the phone.
Step 4
There are no invitations in Greek homes. Greek parents love to go for ‘drives’ and those leisurely moments will lead to your front door, unannounced. If you are lucky, they will not have a key, but if for some reason you are not home, they will wait in the driveway, calling you on every available mode of communication you have. There they will sit, in your driveway, until you come home.
Step 5
If by chance they do have a key you will come home to a home cooked meal, laundry that is finished, folded and put away, and furniture that is rearranged. On the days when your mother in-law has not come over, you will be sure to somehow find your way to her home. This visit will be either for dinner, for maintenance on some part of her house or just so she can see her grandchildren. It will not matter that she just saw them that morning. She wants to see them again.
Step 6
Finally, remember that everything she does from the time she wakes up until the time she goes to sleep is for her children. You, as the spouse of one of these children will benefit in several ways. You will never go hungry. You will always have a baby-sitter. You will always have new clothes and so will your children. You will never go missing unreported. You will always have a defense attorney. You will never be right, but it is okay, your spouse has never been right either. And above all, you will always be loved, even though you are not what she had always ‘hoped’ for.
Tips & Warnings
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A sense of humor is key, laugh and your Greek mother in-law will laugh with you. She means well and her intentions are golden.
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If you want to stay married to your Greek spouse, you must accept that you are also marrying his or her family. ‘Til death do you part.
It was my worst fear. I thought I was going to stuff up the Stephana…
I went to a Greek wedding a couple of weeks before my sister’s wedding and the Koumbara Stuffed up the Stephana. It was the Koumbara’s most important role in the whole wedding and she didn’t know what to do.
The Koumbara just couldn’t get her hands the right way. The Priest tried to help but for the thirty seconds of confusion, the entire room of guests broke into laughter.
It funny for the people who were standing inside the Church to watch but it was completley embarrasing for the Koumbara. She had stuffed up the Stephana.
For weeks, I kept playing this over in my mind. I didn’t want to stuff it up. I didn’t want everyone to laugh at me. So i watched a few Greek Wedding videos and I practiced the crossing of the Stephana.
WHAT TO DO:
First, cross your arms. Use your right hand to hold the Stephana of the Bride and your left hand to hold the Stephana of the Groom.
Then, here comes the tricky part… cross your hands over. Before you start, check which arm is on top. If you are right handed then you will probably have your right hand on top. If you are starting with your right hand on top, then simply cross your hands over so that the left hand is on top. Then cross it back and put your right hand on top.
Do this 3 times.
The trick is to put the Bride’s Stephana back on the Bride’s head. It does not touch the Grooms head. This is the same for the Groom. The Grooms Stephana goes back to the Groom and never touches the Brides head.
This is the same practice for crossing the rings.
Here is a pic from my sister’s wedding. Have a look at how my hands cross over.
Did you Stuffed up the Stephana? What happened and what did you do?
British couples flock to Greek islands for Mamma Mia! weddings
More than 200 British fans of ‘Mamma Mia!’ are getting married on
Greek islands this summer to recreate the wedding scene in their
favourite film.
A travel agency offering a special ‘Mamma Mia! marriage’ package is
flying couples to Greece for custom-made ceremonies with the same
rustic charm as the one featured in the romantic comedy featuring
Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan.
Jane and Andreas Palikiras, who run London-based Ionian Weddings, say
Greek weddings are a “growth industry” and that they had organised
more than 100 such ceremonies this summer.
They told the Sunday Times that many British couples are choosing the
islands of Skiathos or Skopelos, both of which featured in the box
office hit film, and some are insisting on an Abba soundtrack to
complete the experience.
Sharon Lawrence, 28, a business travel consultant from Colchester, who
got married on Skiathos, said: “As soon as I saw the film I thought
‘this is it’ but I didn’t even know which part of Greece it was in. So
I got on the internet and did some research.”
She wed Kevin, a 33 year-old printer, at the town hall on June 2
followed by a reception for 30 similar to the one in the film, which
is an adaptation of the successful West End show.
Mr Palikiras said it was not possible to get married in the exact same
hilltop chapel on Skopelos used in the film because it is too small
and is reserved for members of the Greek Orthodox religion.
He said the film had driven up tourism on the islands featured in the
films but conceded locals were “probably getting a bit sick of it”.
He added that bookings rose 60 per cent after the DVD of the film was
released just before Christmas last year.
This Pink Stefana is by Penny K Design. Click here to be directed to the Penny K Design web site.
The Stefana are Greek Orthodox Wedding Crowns that are used by the Priest and the Koumbari to bless the Bride and Groom during the wedding ceremony.
They are often kept by the Bride and Groom as a souvenir from the wedding. It is important to ensure that the Stefana are made from materials that can be preserved so that the Bride and Groom can keep it for many long years of their marriage.
The Stefana can be made with:
- Semi-precious Stones
- Swarovski Crystals
- Freshwater Pearls
- Glass Beads
The Stefana is traditionally purchased by the Koumbaro/Koumbara and is presented as a gift on the day of the wedding.
Many couples that i know did not get to see their Stefana until the Wedding Day. It was intentionally kept a secret so that the style and look of the Stefana was a surprise.
Personally i think that the Stefana needs to suit the Bride’s dress and her personality. My sister and I went shopping together and i let her choose which Stefana she wanted. It eliminated the surprise but at least i knew that it would fit her and that the design of the crown would suit her dress.
Do you think that the Stefana should be a suprise on the wedding day?
If you live in Australia, then you would have seen the wedding pictures of Yanna & Kosta’s Wedding. An email was sent around to all most every Greek person i know and it was all over the news. This wedding was certainly an extravagant Greek Wedding.
Here are some more of Yanna & Kosta’s Wedding Photos:
Click here to be directed to the Sydney Morning Herald’s article about Yanna & Kosta’s Big Fat Greek Wedding
What is the most extravagant Greek wedding that you have seen?
My Big Fat Greek Wedding is a fantastic movie about a Greek woman who falls in love with a ‘Vegetarian’. It is funny and although it is slightly exaggerated it is genuininly true. Greek Weddings often resemble the movie in many ways – big Greek family’s (who all share the same name), 50 bridesmaids, a strict but loving family and Windex.
Have you been to a Greek Wedding? How did compare to the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding??
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