We continue, friends, with the wedding game there in Egypt… The wedding week is finally over – after a two-year struggle against requests from a future mother-in-law and bride who are constantly proving the bridegroom’s generosity by enjoying each party. The wedding week in Egypt begins on a Friday, our Holy Day in Egypt, and everyone is called to watch the signing of a contract near a wedding house. The contract has two articles that the poor groom has to sign:
  • 1. All trousseau, furniture and household appliances will be property of future wife.
  • 2. Signing the divorce fine, that is, in the event of divorce, he would pay like a living reward or fine that can reach up to 500 grams of 18 carat gold for his wife. Then we left Mesquita, partying, preparing the pickup truck caravan that will carry the bride’s furniture for their new future home. These furniture can’t be bought in a single day: the girl’s mother can stay two whole years going out every Friday to the Ataba market in Cairo (like 25 March here in Sao Paulo) to buy everything wholesale, because she always buys everything in dozens. For example: 2 dozen bed sheets, 2 dozen tablecloths, a dozen tablecloths, 5 cotton bedspreads, etc … For the purpose of filling the entire apartment because in Egyptian tradition no space can be left in rooms without placing anything (not to let the devil dwell in the spaces between the bride and groom and tease them both). The trousseau caravan can reach up to 20 pickup trucks, this day becomes an open air museum of wedding furniture (because people there like to display the furniture that the husband bought for his wife) and women start to feel elbow pain when They find in furniture a novelty type 3 refrigerators instead of 2, 3 televisions instead of 2, 10 bed sheets 1200 threads but the usual can be 8 sheets only. Same in dishes: you can find in a layette over 300 plates, 300 spoons, knives, forks, plus 5 flower pots… The number of carpet there is sacred in Egypt: it has to be 4 rugs at least if not the people whole would make fun of the bridal family. The same thing with gas cylinders has to be 3: one for baking and one for baking bread and the third for setting the house on fire when you get mad at your wife… What can even provoke you this day and find the quantities of wedding suitcases that can reach up to 15 suitcases, for example. There it is normal to find trouser bag, sweater bag (long, rustic type), sock bag, bathrobe bag, abbayas bag, hair clips bag, shoe bag and sandals… After all this, you feel that this layette is for resale not and to put in an apartment soon.
And as usual, continue next time!