Weddings!!!! This seems to be the year for weddings of people I know in Lichinga. We started the year out with Diana and Josue, then two weeks before I returned to Lichinga one of the girls who lived in our back cottage, Zinha, got married and now Moses. Weddings start with a lot of documentation at the government building, then an actual wedding at the registrar. This can be days before the church wedding or even on the day of the church wedding. Moses' was on the day of the wedding, so what happens? .... The day begins with a 9 am wedding at the registrar, some people arrive and cheer this event. Then everyone gets in cars or trucks and proceed to the airport, yes the airport. This is THE place to have some pictures taken. After a few pictures: kissing, carrying the bride, spying through the trees, and of course families and god parents everyone moves back to the church. Here there is a wedding service, very traditionally western. After that is the reception. Moses was at Anglican conference center. The bride and groom with parents and god parents were seated on a raised area in the front, on the side was a row of large pots of food, taken from the fires(very black), and then the rest of the space was filled with tables of guests. The guests were served with plates of food ranging from french fries, rice, nsima, chicken, goat, beef, with a little bit of lettuce. This is not a choice, the choice is which on of the plates the server wants to give you. After everyone has eaten, there is a cake which the bride cuts into little pieces and offers to all the guests, before the couple recieve gifts. This all seems to be organized on the day, but most of the organization has happened two days before, when the groom goes several hours away to get the meat for the meal, friends round up cases of empty coke bottles to be filled, and someone finds a dress for the bride.