Saudi Wedding Album

The gorgeous bride and her beautiful mom.  I love this photo!

This is a very special and a very long post.  There are more pictures in this post than I have ever published before in a single post.  I've shown photos from Saudi weddings before, but never like this.  I hope you will enjoy coming along with me step by step, inside a Saudi wedding that I attended on Valentine's Day (I know, right? How romantic!) here in Jeddah. 

Above is a photo of the decorated car the bride and groom would leave the reception in.  Some wedding cars I have seen in the past have been so completely covered in decoratations that I don't know how the driver could see out the windshield!  

Saudi weddings are notorious for starting very late at night and running until daybreak!  This wedding was held at a grand new hotel I had been dying to see - and I finally got my chance last month.  I was actually one of the first guests to arrive at about 10:30pm. But it gave me a chance to take photos of the splendid ballroom which oozed elegance and was embellished with gold accents and enormous floral arrangements.  

The atmosphere of the luxurious ballroom was swathed with dreamy violet lighting and embellished with moving sunray shapes projected up onto the walls.  There were so many sparkling crystal chandeliers up above on the ceiling that I lost count of how many there were!  I just loved the purple lighting and the shadows.  

The wedding hall was truly magical and almost surreal in its grandeur - it was definitely what fairy tales are made of. Simply a perfect way to start off a marriage.  

Each table was adorned with sweets and treats, dates and chocolates and other bite sized goodies.  We were offered our choice of fancy juice drinks with sugared rims.  FYI - Alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited in Saudi Arabia.  Consequently, the large choice of different juice drinks is like no other place I have ever been.  

The sensational multi-layered wedding cake was decorated with beautiful fresh flowers in pinks, blues and purples.  It was on display in a corner of the stunning ballroom next to the stage.  

Saudi Arabia also has an amazing selection of regional sweet dates - I never knew there were so many varieties until I moved here! We certainly don't get such a wide selection of dates like this in the USA...

As more and more female guests arrived at the wedding over the next hour or so, soon the wedding hall was packed with hundreds of gorgeous women dressed to the nines, with their hair and makeup professionally done, in dazzling high heels and sparkly dangling earrings.  

This is the table of wedding guests that I sat with - friends of the mother of the bride, mostly expat women like myself who are married to Saudi men.  Typically traditional Saudi weddings are gender segregated.  Quite often the men's wedding event is held on a different night at a different venue.  Of course I've never been to a men's wedding in Saudi Arabia, but there are plenty of videos available online that show what goes on at one - lots of singing and sword dancing!

The singer for the evening - she had a lovely voice and sang in Arabic

Some Saudi women's weddings have music and dancing, and some don't, depending on what the bride's preference is.  Most weddings I have been to here in Saudi Arabia have a dance floor which is more like a long catwalk, where graceful women in flowing gowns, dripping in glittering jewels, glide and wiggle to the music up and down the runway.  Saudi women seem to have this very sensual way of moving - a talent I don't have... sigh. Weddings are a common venue in this culture to scout out a potential future bride for a relative - like one's brother, son, or nephew - who might be ready for marriage.  

This is the happy mother of the bride, Diana, with two of her beautiful granddaughters, who looked liked little princesses.  Diana is an American who lived in Saudi Arabia for 35 years and whose husband was Saudi.  So her daughter Areej, the bride, is half-Saudi and half-American.   

Shortly after midnight, the drama began when the lights dimmed and a spotlight shined up toward the balcony above - and the groom appeared!  He waved and smiled at the adoring females below for a short spell while music played.   And then, the beautiful bride made her appearance! Together the couple waved and threw handfuls of pink rose petals down from the balcony for several minutes. The crowd of women loved it! It was exciting!

Next, while carefully selected romantic Western music played, slowly the bride and groom descended down the staircase, making their grand entrance.  Prior to the groom's appearance on the balcony, many of the female guests had draped themselves with their scarves and abayas to cover up their hair and evening attire.  

Once the newlyweds made their way into the wedding hall well after midnight, they received well wishers from their perch on the beautifully decorated stage.  Fabulous floral arrangements are an important part of the stage decor where the couple sits, along with a large couch where guests can linger and visit with them for a bit.     

The happy couple shared their first dance together as man and wife while giant sparklers blazed and lit up the hall.  It was spectacular and romantic.  At this point the groom was the only man in a room with all those female guests, who all watched on, taking delight in the euphoria and jubilation enveloping the hall.  

I don't know exactly how many guests were in attendance in the enormous ballroom, but I'm guessing there were several hundred.  

Here's a closer shot of the stage where the bride and groom sat to receive guests.  And below is a photo of them cutting into their magnificent wedding cake together.   

They made a very handsome couple - she in her beautiful white gown and long flowing veil, and he in his traditional formal Saudi wedding clothing, including a striking gray "bisht" with gold trim and his white head covering called ghotra.  Some men choose to wear the red and white checkered shemagh typical of Saudi menswear - it's up to the man whatever his preference is - but I think the plain white scarf is a little more formal and dignified looking for a lavish occasion like a wedding.

After the female relatives congratulated the newlyweds on the stage, the male relatives of the families then made an appearance, filing into the hall as the female guests clapped and cheered.   

They all looked so splendid and classic in their formal wear.  Then the family members posed for traditional wedding photos all together.  

The bride also posed with her sister, who was part of the wedding party and the mother of the two beautiful little princesses I pictured before.  

Once the photos were all taken and the men departed the wedding hall, it was time to eat - and what a feast it was!  It was already about 2 am by this time... 

The banquet hall was just across from the wedding hall.  The larger dining tables seated up to ten and had purple napkins.  Mouth watering food stations were everywhere.  The colorful delectable presentations of food were pure art.  

As much as I would have liked to have tried a taste of everything, it would have been impossible.  Everything that I did taste though was absolutely delicious.  There were salads and dips, breads and pastries, all kinds of seafood, chicken and lamb dishes, a sushi bar, casseroles, an assortment of rice dishes, finger foods, fruits and vegetables and on and on.  It was amazing! Words simply cannot do it justice! 

The buffet was overwhelming and spectacular. I did sample some sushi - the curved hammered metal table it was displayed on was out of this world!

Table after table of more and more food.  It was so difficult deciding what to put on my plate, as it was already after 2 am, and I didn't really want to eat that much so late.  Decisions, decisions!

There were hot dishes, cold dishes, room temperature dishes - you name it!  What a selection!  It was magnificent.

Many traditional Saudi dishes were also served, and there was even a taco station.  Every dish was impeccably and artfully presented.

Carved melon sculptures were featured at several of the food displays.  They were truly works of art.  Here is an amazing momma eagle feeding her baby carved out of what appears to be canteloupe. 

And here is a carved watermelon made into a big vase with kabob sticks of various fruit arranged like a beautiful floral display.  Isn't it exquisite?

All kinds of meat kabobs, which were delicious - I love kabob!  It's a specialty of this part of the world, and boy, do they know how to do it right!  

Here's another amazing carved fruit sculpture centerpiece of a rooster accompanying sliced fruits, vegetables and cheeses.  

I have shown you but a fraction of the scrumptious food that was served, but I'm sure by now you have gotten a pretty good idea of how spectacular and overwhelming it was. It was indeed a feast!

Oh! And let's not forget the desserts.  There were several dessert tables loaded with scrumptious looking treats of cakes, pies, puddings, and elegant tidbits that I don't even know the names of.  This is just a small part of just one of the many dessert tables. I tried bites of 3 different desserts. Yum!

After dinner, the partying continued until the wee hours of the morning.  Some of the ladies departed the wedding after eating, but many of us remained for more hours of fun.  As smaller children gradually fell asleep on chairs, many of the remaining women danced the night away.  It was such a fun night! I didn't get home until after 5am!!!

A good time was had by all! I was happy that my friend Aisha talked me into getting out on the dance floor too.  I hadn't really danced in years.  Such a fun group of women!

Here's one final parting shot - the beautiful bride on the marble staircase. 

Many many thanks to Diana and her family for allowing me to post these photos of this very special occasion - a night to remember for all of us.  And thanks to you for coming along with me as I revisited this fantastic evening - I hope you enjoyed it!

Note - Times are changing in Saudi Arabia. The internet is responsible for a lot of those changes in attitudes. One area of great change is photography. When I first moved here 11 years ago, people, especially women, used to freak out when they saw me with my camera. Now society has become more comfortable around cameras. This post would have never been possible just a few short years ago.     

A Peek Inside a Saudi Wedding

In December I attended a family wedding at the brand new Hotel Galleria by Elaf in Jeddah.  The lobby is quite elegant and it's several stories tall. It has a grand European ambience.  The exterior of the hotel is spectacular. We arrived after dark though, so I don't have any exterior shots, but you can see some HERE. 

Traditionally, Saudi weddings are notorious for starting very late in the evening and lasting until the wee hours in the morning.  I believe this is due to several reasons.  First of all, people don't really start getting ready for the wedding until after the isha prayer, the last prayer of the evening.  Also, the bridal party usually arrives early to take professional photos with the family before the guests arrive. Since many Saudi weddings are still segregated affairs, this allows for time for the male family members to be in the photos, even though they are not part of the actual wedding.  This wedding was for women only. The men's affair was held the evening before at a completely different venue. 

The wedding venue was so elegant and spectacular.  Every detail had been well thought out. At one end of the hall was a raised stage with a gorgeous golden couch for the bridal party (the bride, her mom, and her sisters) to receive well wishers. 

The table centerpieces varied from table to table, with some having candelabras and others with large floral centerpieces.  Delicious dates were available on each table.

Once the female guests begin to arrive, photography is forbidden, so unfortunately I don't have any photos of the amazing evening gowns that were worn that night.  But I can tell you that the gowns could have been worn at the Academy Awards. Some of the younger women wore short trendy party dresses. Many guests had their hair and makeup professionally done for the occasion. 

The gorgeous seating area on the stage for the bride was surrounded by beautiful purple and white floral arrangements.  It was picture perfect.

My husband and I took advantage of the free time we had before the other guests arrived to take photos. We don't get dressed up fancy very often.  I think he looks so handsome in his traditional wear, don't you?  He had to leave before the female guests began arriving.

At the other end of hall was an amazing space great for photos, decorated with flower streams hanging down over flowing white drapes.  It was truly spectacular. 

The female-only servers were all dressed formally in black and white.  They were very attentive and brought us drinks of water and juices as soon as we sat down.  They also served us a variety of finger foods that were delicious.  The crystal chandeliers in the ballroom were exquisite. 

Guests began arriving after 10 pm.  It was fun seeing the variety of gorgeous dresses the ladies wore.  The ladies danced up and down the center aisle you see above. The music was a live female percussion band that had a singer with a beautiful voice who sang in Arabic.  The bride made her grand entrance at about 1 am, slowly making her way down the staircase and then gliding down the center aisle toward the golden couch at the other end.  It was the family's choice that the groom did not make an appearance at the wedding before the women. 

Above is just one of the platters of tasty delights that was served to us.  These were all sweet and other platters of finger foods were savory.  I would have liked to have tasted them all!  Dinner was served at about 2 am in the adjoining banquet room.  It consisted of table after table of scrumptious salads, breads, dips, vegetables, meats, and desserts.  The variety was overwhelming.  It was all delicious!  Sorry I couldn't get photos of the amazing buffet spread, but the female guests were all around, so I couldn't. 

My friend Vicki and I had an fabulous time that evening.  It was Vicki's first Saudi wedding ever and I think she had a very memorable time.  We sat with a table full of charming Saudi women who were old friends of my sister-in-law, the mother of the bride. 

Below is the candelabra centerpiece which adorned some of the tables.  Both types of centerpieces were placed on top of a large glass Lazy Susan, which made reaching things on it much easier. 

One final shot of me and my Saudi Prince - we were actually celebrating a milestone ourselves the very next day - 40 years together!  Gee, it seems like it was only yesterday ...