I had the honor and privilege to photograph a Vietnamese/American wedding at the beautiful and magical Longfellow’s Wayside Inn. It was a wonderful experience to watch this groom honor the culture that he’d grown up with. There’s something to be said about having traditional elements of your culture added to your wedding day.
Before I continue with the traditions, however, I have to say that this wedding party wore Harry Potter costumes and acted out scenes from the movie as they were introduced into the venue – so I included a few of them to portray how much fun this wedding was.
This couple and the groom’s parents and their extended family celebrated with a traditional Vietnamese Tea ceremony. The Tea Ceremony combines the celebration of marriage with honoring the family’s ancestors and relatives. This makes it one of the most compelling and emotional parts of a Vietnamese wedding.
Another way they incorporated a sense of tradition into their wedding, was with a Vietnamese lion and dragon dance – a great way to add fun. The guests were entertained by the beautiful dance, which lasted about 15 to 20 minutes. Lion and dragon dances are performed accompanied by the music of beating of drums, cymbals, and gongs instruments synchronized to the lion dance movements and actions.
And as they continued with tradition, the groom’s parents presented wedding jewelry to the bride to be
I hope you enjoy these traditions and cultural elements from this lovely Sudbury, Massachusetts wedding.
