Today the 3 Ivey students were invited to attend a traditional Ghanaian wedding engagement of a family that we have gotten to know fairly well. It was amazing to see how different the traditions are. The bride’s and groom’s families sit opposite each other. The groom’s family then presented the bride’s family with gifts. Half way through the exchanges, the bride entered and confirmed her desire to join the groom’s family. Surprisingly the groom was unable to attend so a different family member gave the bride the ring. The elders of both families then provide advice and blessings to the soon-to-be-married couple. I think the entire neighbourhood was invited because there were a lot of people.
Being invited was an honour and everyone was so happy to have us there. It is proof of how welcoming the people of Ghana are. They value family and friends so highly.