I went to my first bona-fide Samoan wedding last weekend in a village called Salani, only two away from mine but seperated by a river without a bridge. I planned ahead and wore swimming shorts underneath my formal lavalava so when I came to river I held my clothes over my head as I swam the fifty feet or so to the other side. The wedding itself isn't too much different from the States because it is a Christian wedding but there are a few subtle differences. To begin the church procession the groom sat in the front of the church all by his lonesome looking straight ahead for a good ten minutes. I was thinking that if you had second thoughts it would be a long ten minutes. The other amusing aspect was the consumating kiss, which I was waiting for because I had yet to see two Samoans kiss in public as it is a taboo. So when they exchanged a quick and very awkward peck I could tell it was one of those Western rituals that still hasn't quite caught up to the Samoan way. Afterward it was like a typical Samoan fa'alavelave, lots of eating, singing, and dancing. Of course, everyone there extended the most cordial hospitality you could imagine to me. Samoans never cease to amaze me with their kindness.
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