Indonesian Wedding

Wedding parties in Indonesia, at least those that I'd been invited to, are eye-popping to most non-Asians. Several main differences between Indonesian weddings and American weddings (which seem to be on extreme ends - Chinese wedding I've ever attended was kind of in the middle) are the involvement of parents and the number of guests invited.

Indonesian weddings, like what I had seven years ago, and what my sister just had last week, usually funded mostly, if not all, by the parents. It's them that really wanted to "show off" their achievements: the money they've made so they can arrange such a great party and invite so many people who I probably know only one-fifth of them. Total guests invited in my wedding were 2000 (1000 invitations), and every single of them was fed in buffet type dinner. That number is half of what my parents and in-law were thinking about doing.

Although I truly think it's a waste of money and is very taxing to the couples (traditional clothing, weird costumes and make ups), I'm not sure if I'll be able to not do the same thing to my kids. Peer pressure. However, things are changing. Who knows twenty years from now it's no longer the parents' responsibility to fund the wedding party? That'll be good.

A website for expats in Indonesia considers being invited to an Indonesian wedding fortunate, an opportunity to gain insight into Indonesian culture and social more.