Your world, My world and OUR World.

Good evening,

I wanted to talk a little bit more about the wedding issue, but did not want to make my blog longer than it already was. So I’m creating this page to add more information and to clarify some issues that I didn’t talk about in the blog.

The first thing that I want to say is that I don’t want to portray my country in a negative way by making seem like we have arranged marriages. The marriage system that I was talking about describes the way things are supposed to go according to tradition, but not really the way things are in modern times. Today, a lot of men and women become involved in relationships for a while then they decide to get married. They still go through the whole process of asking the bride’s parents for her hand in marriage for the sake of keeping traditions alive. But the choice is ultimately the bride’s. The bride in most families chooses whether she wants to accept the marriage proposal or not.

Another interesting detail is this: The lucky groom PAYS FOR EVERYTHING. The groom must present the bride to be’s parents with her dowry. That amount according to my dad is left to the groom’s discretion because “we are not selling our daughter, we admire the man for his character not the depth of his pockets.” Whatever, I say pay up! J/K. Anyway…

The dowry includes the wife’s expenses for the marriage. Like how much the dress is going to cost, whether there will be a big wedding or a small one. The groom must also buy the bride what we call a “shabka”. These are the engagement/wedding ring, plus a necklace, bracelet, and sometimes a watch for the bride to wear at the wedding or engagement party. (These days Diamonds are the preferred choice or Jewelry.) He must also provide a place for the couple to live after they are married. An apartment, a house, whatever it may be. Sometimes this is a requirement for the groom.

Not to worry, even though all of these expenses are the groom’s responsibility, he does get a little bit of help, from the government. Yes. Our government gives a man who wants to get married about $6000 to help start his married life and provide the bride with what she might need. Believe it or not, guys complain all the time about how little that help is.

I really can’t think of anything else to say about this issue except that I’m in no hurry to get there myself. If you guys have any questions please feel free to ask me anything, I will be more than happy to oblige.