WEDDING

Wedding feasts usually started after 2 o?clock in the afternoon. And they ended at ten or so, when the restaurants closed, if they were in populated areas, like, for instance, those on the ground floor of some block of flats. At ten, everything had to close. But if the neighborhood was not too crowded and there was no one to complain about the noise, it could stay open as long as you wanted. That is, if you paid a tax, because otherwise they too had to close before midnight. When we had our wedding, in 1977, at Manuc?s Inn, we were allowed to stay until midnight. The inn also rented rooms, and since there was no one lodged there, they let us stay until midnight. So at midnight, Geta and I were about to leave, when my father said he wanted to stay on, with some friends. He asked me if I could give them 5 000 lei to spend till morning. And I said I had nothing to do with that, if they wanted to stay, they might well pay for it, too, I for one was going to leave with my wife. We spent the night in the North Station, in the waiting room. That?s what we felt like, and that?s what we did. We slept in the 1^st class waiting room, and were lying on one side until one of us felt like turning on the other, and so everyone had to turn as well. (I. H., 29)

A wedding in those times was certainly no easy thing!

I?ll tell you about one that took place in 1988, in two stages: on June 2^nd, at the register?s office, and on June 4^th at 6 PM, at the Popa Nan Church in Popa Nan Street. Before we got there, we had to deal with serious problems, like the outfit of the bride and groom, given that shops were generally empty and it was impossible to find white leather for the shoes, white socks and the like. I managed to order the shoes at the last moment, when I had already been convinced I was going to marry bare-footed. The sandals proved to be too small for my feet, but it was too late, anyway, so I had to wear them in church. This is one of the reasons why the moment truly became unforgettable. The first thing I did after it was all over was to sell my shoes, which had cost me about 330 lei ? quite a sum in those days. It was easier with the dress: I borrowed it. It was beautiful, it had been bought in Chicago, where it had cost about $2000, which was beyond our powers of imagination then. The groom?s clothes were found and bought in a shop on Victoria Road. As for my stockings, Alexandru bought them for me and hid them under father?s bed lest I should find them before time. They were full of dust when we recuperated them but they came in handy. I think they were Polish or something. Since the on-coming ceremony and all its embarrassing moments frightened the groom, we gave up the usual ribbons, the visit to the photographer?s, the invitation cards with their stupid texts and illustrations. We ordered the candles at a private owner?s shop, in the Vacaresti Monastery area. I still believe they are the most beautiful wedding candles I?ve ever seen. Everyone who attended the ceremony in church also came to our house. It was the last event to take place at no 35, Valeriu Braniste Street. As it was built in the early 20^th century, it was soon to be demolished: more exactly on August 1^st 1988. The bases of a future block of flats had killed two of the old, half-a-century old, fir trees and had broken the yard in two. Our guests were dancing ?on the edge of the abyss?. A thin palisade separated the yard from a regular precipice. The food was yet another problem. We could not afford a restaurant (at least in this respect our wedding differed from those my colleagues had in the ?80s). We had to manage by ourselves. Alexandru and I got a loan to pay for the event. I remember a year had passed since, and we were still paying back our shares. We had managed with the clothes, but the food problem was a bit too much. Mama was advised to go to someone who might provide us with meat. She did all she had to, and when we received the meat, we saw half of it was rotten. It was equally complicated to procure the coffee. As for the wine, a friend took Alexandru to a restaurant or pub in the neighborhood, where someone supplied him with one-litter bottles. The guests seemed to be satisfied with it. We also managed to get some plum brandy, with someone?s help, of course. I remember we received two wedding cakes (my godmother?s mother-in-law cooked them for us). On top of one of them there was one big strawberry, and I don?t think I ate another one that summer. The curios little Gypsies were hanging on the big fence and staring at us. We gave each of them a little something. In the morning, at dawn, we ate the giblets soup. Alexandru and I almost never got a chance to meet that night, there was always something to do. I can tell from the pictures that we danced a bit, but all I can remember is that my feet hurt frightfully and that I always had to see someone out, as if people were continually leaving. Yet, the guests swear it was a memorable wedding. (S. A., 76)