I left the kibbutz on Thursday and arrived at my grandparents just in time to join the in the first wedding related activity! It is customary for a Jewish Bride before her wedding to purify herself at the Mikvah which is a ritual bath. I was aware of this tradition to visit the Mikvah before you get married and more religious Jews visit much more often but my cousin did something very different that I have never heard before. She invited her female family members as well as her fiance's female relatives to accompany her to the Mikvah (of course we waited in the lobby as she entered the Mikvah) and afterwards we enjoyed a festive meal together just the women. For me, this was not only fun but also a culture shock as I have never heard of someone doing this for their pre-wedding Mikvah visit. It was really cool to be there and I felt honored to be included in such a unique experience!
On Friday, after a nice breakfast with my grandma at a near by cafe, I went to Reut's (my cousin who is getting married) bachelorette party which was planned by her two sisters and sister-in-law! It was such a beautiful party which included fun bridal games, a chocolate lesson which I obviously loved, and just hanging out with Reut and her closest girl friends. Again, I was so happy to be included in this as well as beign around to be able to attend all the wedding festivities. Although Reut and her family are distant cousins, every time I visited Israel I grew up hanging out with them and her family has become amazing friends of my family and it is so nice to have such incredible people here with me in Israel.
Saturday was a relaxing day as I was already exhausted and had to save my energy for the wedding the next day. After spending the entire day in my pajamas I finally became a real person at night as I attended a show with my grandparents and their friends which was a performance honoring a former popular Israeli singer. Although I had trouble understanding the entirety of the performance I enjoyed the upbeat music and talented dancing.
The day of the wedding finally arrived and I couldn't have been more excited! I hadn't been to a wedding since I was a flower girl when I was 7 so I was thrilled to be able to attend my third wedding and that it was in Israel! Not only was it the wedding day but it also happened to be my birthday. Although maybe not as excited as most Americans 21st birthday, I had an amazing day spending it with great people. Since the wedding wasn't until the evening I decided to go into Tel Aviv and meet up with a friend, Julie, who happens to be a relative of best family friend's of ours from home. She made my birthday very special by taking me to a beautiful city of Yaffo right outside of Tel Aviv to a restaurant of her friends. We ate in the calm and quiet streets of the beautiful city and were treated to birthday cake thanks to Julie and her friend! After more walking and making our way back to the center of Tel Aviv I headed back on a bus to get back to my grandparents.
After getting ready we finally made our way to the wedding. It was the most beautiful and elegant night filled with dancing and celebrating an amazing couple! Not only was the place absolutely gorgeous but the newlyweds happiness was glowing from a mile away and it was an honor to celebrate with them and their friends and family! I decided I love Israeli weddings as they have an amazing energy to them that is simply indescribable...maybe its the Israeli music or the Israeli mentality, I don't really know but it was truly an amazing night. Sending another Mazal Tov to my beautiful cousin, Reut, and her amazing husband, Asaf!
Although I was glad to return back to the Kibbutz and see my friends it was hard to pop out of the vacation bubble as the weekend had been filled with exciting and unforgettable moments!
No comments:
Post a Comment