I PREVIOUSLY told you all about the process of a melka in Saudi; now let’s get down to the fun stuff, the actual wedding. As you see in my picture above, the homes in Saudi are decorated the week of a wedding. This signifies someone in the home is about to get married. About three days before the wedding takes place the bride’s family will have henna done together. Not all brides choose to have henna applied; this practice is actually dying out these days. And the two days afterwards are dedicated to getting ready and the last finishing touches.

The groom or his family pays for the wedding. Weddings are held at a huge location with split areas:  one for the men’s area and another one for the women’s. Both areas are extremely large in order to accommodate the families, and each section also opens up into the dining areas (also segregated). Weddings in Saudi almost always start after Ishaa (the last prayer of the day, which is not long after dark). The women that attend the wedding look as if they are ready for a night at the Oscars, with dazzling evening gowns and jewelry. No detail is too small for a Saudi wedding. Many guests give the bride’s mother money to give to the bride or gifts.

The bride’s father, brothers and the groom and his brothers and father arrive early in order to greet any guest that may come. The bride’s sisters and mother arrange everything on the women’s side and are also at the venue early (around Maghrib, the sunset prayer). A male guard will be sitting at the door of the women’s area to ensure that no men enter the private party.

Once the women are inside, women guards will await each guest to check their abayas and take any cameras or phone with cameras from guests. The groom’s sisters and mother will greet the guests as they come in but the bride’s mother, sisters, aunts and sisters-in-law will host the actual wedding events and be the main attraction (other than the bride of course). Most khaleej weddings are usually arranged similarly although things like decorations and furniture differ. After the entrance there is a huge aisle decorated with fancy Arabic chairs alongside both sides. These seats are reserved for the bride’s close family as mentioned above. Behind the chairs on both sides are dozens of tables set with beautiful flower arrangements, stainless silver trays, teapots, dullahs, glasses, sweets and napkins. Special women are hired to do various jobs.

All-women singing groups that sing with only the duff drum are generally hired for weddings. The women are usually African. Women that are good at the Arabic woman’s zaghruta are hired for the event: women to keep the children from getting on the stage and messing up the brides al-kosha before she arrives, women that prepare the food, women who hang the abayas, women who check for cameras, and women that serve the bride’s family (things like Saudi coffee, sweets, cappuccinos and tea). Specially hired women will also bring the best of bukhoor to the bride’s family for them to wave the sweet scent onto them.

The Saudi greeting for such an occasion is a hug, saying asalam alaykum and elf mabrook and many kisses on the cheek. You go in for the kiss as many times as they give it to you. Some will be short others very long. You do this for each guest and most weddings have hundreds of guests. The guest will be greeted at the door and then they walk into the where the aisle of chairs are and go up to each of the family members sitting (all family members will stand up) and everyone will greet the guest that has arrived. Guests will continue to pour in for hours until well after midnight. Not long after the guests start arriving Arabic music will be blaring from the speakers so the guests can dance. This is a great way for the older women to have fun and the younger girls who are not yet married to be noticed. They dance down the aisle and up on the large stage. Saudi women dance like no other that I have ever seen, and no one knows how they dance unless then have been to an actual wedding.

The bride’s aunts, sisters and sisters-in-law will take huge trays of amazing sweets and chocolates around to all guests, serving them. This is to thank the guests for coming to the wedding. The bride usually does not show up to the wedding until around 1 or 2 am. She wants to make sure that all guests have arrived, that she is ready mentally and physically and that her photographs are finished being taken. The bride will enter on a set of stairs with a beautiful velvet curtain drawn for her grand entrance. The lights will go dim and a beautiful song that the bride has chosen will be played. The room is filled with the most amazing and expensive wedding bukhoor that one can buy. The curtains are drawn and the beautiful bride sees her wedding for the first time. She will be the most amazing bride you will ever see in her handmade gown and expensive, attractive jewelry. Saudi brides have a meskah that hangs from their left arm. A meskah is kind of like a bridal bouquet. A hanging bouquet filled with red roses and diamonds, an amazing piece.

The wedding is a very emotional experience for the bride and her guests. You can see the nervousness in her eyes. The bride walks down the huge aisle slowly until she gets upon the stage. A hired photographer is there to capture every moment. The bride’s family is escorted on stage one at a time to have a picture taken with the bride. Guests will soon begin to come one at a time to congratulate the new bride. The bride will sit on her al-kosha and watch as guests dance and have fun. Soon the dining rooms will be opened up to a massive and lavish feast. After the guests have eaten, the bride will stand up and make her grand entrance. The sisters and sister in laws will follow behind her throwing fresh rose petals onto her long, train as she exits. Many guests start to leave the party at this time; it can be well after 3 or 4 o’clock in the morning. Guests leave with small gifts that were bought for them from both the groom’s and bride’s families.

The men’s side of the wedding is much more relaxed. Some do the traditional Saudi dance and mainly the men converse, have coffee and tea and eat dinner. The men’s side usually finishes up soon after midnight.
This is now the start to the bride’s new life without her family, so everyone is emotional. The bride goes into a private room where she prepares once again for her husband to come and take her. The couple usually spends a day or two together at a luxury hotel and then leaves for a month or so abroad. When they return to Saudi, they will have a new life together in their new home as husband and wife.