How about the wedding in Vietnam?

Wedding in Vietnam has something to be appreciated for, especially the traditional one. You know what, the traditional Vietnamese wedding is construed as the confluence of two ideologies, namely the Buddhist and the Confucian. The traditional wedding in Vietnam is, therefore, considered as one of most important cultures among the Vietnamese.

The rituals of the wedding in Vietnam change to a substantial extent based on the ethnic group of the bride and groom. However, there are two main steps that are common here namely the following. 

1. Betrothal ceremony: In Vietnam, the betrothal ceremony is popularly known as the Le an hoi. It essentially involves quite a few steps such as seeing a fortune teller for finding an auspicious date and timing of the wedding. Bride and groom or their families visit the fortune teller for the purpose. Date and timing of the wedding in Vietnam are considered auspicious and, therefore, the groom and his family must be present at the bride’s place on such time and date. The next step follows in the form of gifting the bride from the groom’s side. It is normally done a couple of days ahead from the date of the wedding. Round-shaped lacquered boxes, known as the betrothal presents, are presented to the bride at her home by the groom’s family. You will be surprised to know that things like tea, nuts, betel leaves, cakes, wine, and fruits alongside other delicacies are included in the betrothal presents. 
2. Wedding ceremony: The people of Vietnam call it Le cuoi. The ceremony begins with the journey of the bride and his family members for the bride’s place on the specific date and well in advance so that they all can reach the destination on time for the wedding solemnisation. They carry a lot of gift boxes similar to those of the betrothal presents wrapped in red papers. However, the people entrusted with the job of carrying the gift boxes are carefully chosen. For instance, they must be enjoying happy married life to become eligible as the bearers of those boxes. Men can dress up in their traditional attire known as the ao gam or in the suits befitting their taste and preferences. Ladies and women are, however, required to wear the traditional attire known as the ao dai. The entire troop is headed by the wealthiest and successful couple among the relatives of the groom. This is done in the belief of blessing the married life of the bride and the groom.

The troop will stop in front of the bride’s house and then, the leading couple will enter bride’s house with a tray full of wines. They will invite the bride’s parents for a sip and the bride’s parents do so. The bride’s parents then allow the groom’s family to enter their house. Firecrackers blow up immediately as a part of the wedding in Vietnam and to greet the groom’s family. The modern trend is that Vietnamese are wedding at the church or at the temple.