Rosa and Javier Orlando get married!

Rosa is a smart, wonderful, and very kind woman who works with the program.  She is responsible each day for getting the food for around 100 kids and helping them with homework (which trust me is not easy).  She is the person who has been overseeing the daily operations of the program while GeGe is away. I'm just the bottom line if decisions need to be made or there is money involved.  Really it's Rosa's show and last night was her wedding.  She and her partner have been together for around 14 years and have three sons.  The youngest two are in the program.  They live close by the school and we can (and have) holler at her from GeGe's yard. When I asked Rosa why they were getting married after all these years living as husband and wife she talked about the bible and God's wishes for marriages.  I couldn't argue with that!
I went up to GeGe's late in the afternoon to meet up with the family that lives there.  Hilda and Alejandro have  a son Jasson (21) who teaches the high school math and co-teaches the high school English.  They also have a daughter (12 0r 13) whose name I should now be able to spell but can't.  They all live on the property that houses the school and GeGe's personal living space. They had said that they were all going to the mass along with two more people that I know from work but in the end only Hilda went. They have a huge yard which Rosa and Javier were using for the wedding festivities.  When I got there people were starting with the decorations and an outdoor kitchen with an open fire had been set up to cook the food.  Hilda told me the people decorating were to have arrived at 10:00 AM and instead showed up at 4:00PM.  She was a bit concerned. We soon got into a cab with Rosa's elderly grandmother dressed in typical dress and speaking only Quechua, Rosa's youngest two sons and her youngest brother. Spanish is a second language for so many people here.  Quechua is the language of the Incas that had endured all of these years. We arrived at the old church only to find another wedding still going on so we waited.  We watched that bride exit and get pelted with much rice and flower petals and then it was our turn to go in.  I am the only non-Peruvian anywhere and much of conversations around me are in Quechua.  I just took it all in.  Eventually Rosa arrives in her beautiful white dress with her hair and make-up professionally done and then the wedding seems much like you would find at any Catholic church.  There are no bridesmaids just the god parents who help the couple with the wedding.  Mass lasts for about an hour and then the happy couple also gets pelted with a large amount of rice and flowers.  Hilda and I walked a bit further into town to catch a bus back up to our neighborhood but the bus does not arrive so we taxi up with three other people from the wedding.
When we arrive the back yard has been transformed.  As you walk in the gate there is an arch of flowers for the couple to walk through.  There is a large canopy covered with gold and silver cloth.  At the front is a long table covered in white for the couple, god-parents and family.  There are white plastic chairs for guests and a band has set up.  Hilda finds me a good spot and gets me settled while she hurries to help with food. At this point I feel like I really stand out, well, because I do.  There are many people dressed in typical dress that seem to be from the countryside.  There are other people in modern dress.  I have been told that people from the coast tend to think of themselves as better than people from the mountains.  Both groups of people are at this wedding as Rosa is from the mountains and Javier from the coast.  At one point four people clearly from the mountains walk around a greet everyone.  I saw the three people next to me literally cringe.  It was an interesting observation of class distinction. Soon the happy couple arrived and the party began.  First, they danced with each other, then with the Padrinos, then the family.  Then two official men arrived and they completed the civil ceremony.  Even if they have a church wedding they must still complete the civil ceremony.  By then it was dark and getting cold and I was thirsty and hungry. Luckily the waiters arrived with pisco sours (in and of itself a good reason to visit Peru).  We all toasted the couple. By this time I had started talking to the three people next to me.  When the waiter came to collect our cups there were extras so we all got another drink (mind you they were small) but I was starting to feel warmer.  Soon Alejandro came and got me and we started dancing quickly joined by Jasson and his mom.  Between the drinks and dancing I was feeling much better.  About then Percy showed up. He had the time wrong and had gone to the church and hour late finding a wedding that he thought was Rosa's but was in fact the wedding after hers.  I think Hilda and family were happy that I now had someone to hang out with since they were very busy taking care of the food and being the hosts.  Percy and I moved to the other side of the yard which was warmer than under the canopy.  There were about 150-200 people there.  We were then sitting on the same benches where the kids do homework each day.  Soon the waiters brought dinner.  It was white rice, a warm beet/pea/something salad, and two potato halves in sauce with a piece of meat on top.  I gave the meat to Percy but happily ate the rest.  After dinner large bottles of beer were passed out.  I asked Percy if the normal bottles were always that size to which he replied, "no, there are bigger bottles."  Everyone was drinking beer.  They poured it in these small plastic cups and then would shake out the cup before passing it to someone else.  I'm not a huge beer fan anymore so passed on that tradition but I was impressed how they could drink. About this time a huge basket is brought out and people pile the presents in.  There are no registries here, people just buy what they think is best.  There were many gifts of pop and beer which I thought was great.  Also many wrapped packages.  Later the couple picked up a basked with a whole, cooked, dead pig.  It was their gift for the Padrinos.  As tradition would have it they danced around the yard with this pig and several other people.  A rather amazing sight.  The pig was elaborately decorated with flowers.  There were also five very pretty wedding cakes.  When I commented on them to Percy he told me that they don't actually serve the cakes at the wedding.  Ok, I'm not one to mess with tradition but seriously, that one needs to change.  We joked about poking the cakes to see if they were good.  Luckily at home I still had a piece of cake from a bakery in town so I did not feel too bad for myself.  Eventually, we found ourselves dancing again this time with the bride and groom and Gloria another co-worker who had arrived.  With the stars out, holding hands with this little group dancing away I was reminded once again how fortunate I feel to be in Peru.
On a side note, my fabulous traveling companion Moyra has now returned home.  She made every day yet that much more fun and kept me laughing during our 'adventures.'  The only good thing I can say about her departure is that I have stolen all the blankets off her bed and am now sleeping much warmer.  I will be forever grateful that she was crazy enough to join me on this trip.  I will miss her as I continue to miss you all!  Besos! Carrie