Paphos People

Another episode of our life of discovery in Cyprus

GREEK CYPRIOT WEDDINGS

Greek Cypriot weddings are as far removed from English weddings as Greece is from England. We met a Greek Cypriot family on our first Cyprus Christmas Day 2006 at a celebration in Platres in Troodos, Nina, Chris and their three children. This was followed by an invitation to a traditional Cypriot lunch at their house way up in the mountains. It was the perfect end to our Yuletide break. After eating we played tavli (badly) and cards and exchanged gifts and addresses.
Imagine our surprise when the following summer an invitation to their eldest son’s wedding reception dropped into our letterbox.
It was to be held at ‘The Trikkis Palace Hotel’ in Pentacomo village. That was the other side of Limassol about sixty kilometres from where we lived.
We were the first ex-pats in our complex to be invited to a Greek Cypriot wedding it was a huge feather in our cap in our little community. Full of confidence we made our plans.
Following tradition we knew that anonymous gifts in sealed envelopes were the norm. A very sensible system as the bride and groom very often raise enough money for their first home together, not like in the UK where newlyweds often end up with two or three toasters or worse two or three IRONS!
About two weeks before the wedding, we embarked on an exploratory trip to Pentecomo. Firstly to find the hotel, secondly to book ourselves a room for the night on the wedding so that a long drive, late at night after a wedding was to be avoided. Finding Pentecomo was easy, off the highway, past a large building site then a couple of kilometres into the village. After driving around the village for about fifteen minutes with no sign of the hotel, we stopped and asked. Everybody shook their heads and we started doubting whether we had the right Pentecomo. Then a police car came towards us, we flashed him and he stopped. After explaining the reason for our expedition, he said that the large building site just off the highway was what we were looking for, although he didn’t know the name of it.
Driving into the site we could see that it was a huge project but not finished by any means. It was deserted so we went to the huge entrance doors and peered in. It was very luxurious but clearly had still a lot of work to do. Slightly disappointed we turned to leave and were confronted by a JCB approaching us, flashing headlights and horn blowing. A chap about thirty jumped down and informed us that his name was Joseph. His English was very good and as we explained the situation he clearly understood what we were saying. Producing a scrap of paper he took our name and the date of the wedding. Assuring us that everything was okay and a room was available for us. We were told to ring the boss that evening at nine o’clock to confirm the booking.
We returned home slightly bemused but resigned to the fact that this is Cyprus not England and things were different here. Nine o‘clock came and I dialed the number we had been given by Joseph. A gruff voice with a heavy accent answered and I started to explain what I wanted. Interrupting the gruff man just said the Joseph had explained and everything was alright for that date. On enquiring the cost of the room he said vaguely twenty five euro including breakfast.
The day of the wedding came and even though the reception was not until seven o’clock we arrived at the Hotel at lunchtime. What a transformation, there was a huge car park, no sign of building machinery. The interior was immaculate and people were scurrying around like ants. A huge sign, visable from the highway declared where we were. Taking our suitcase from the car we approached the reception area. No desk, no pigeon holes with room keys, no register. We stopped somebody who seemed important and said that we had a room booked through Joseph. He looked puzzled and made a phone call. After a few minutes a Phillipino girl came to us. Gesturing us to follow her we trailed all over the building finally reaching one room – uncleaned – she left us. We surveyed our surroundings with sinking hearts. Then a knock on the door a smartly dressed man was there, apologising he asked us to follow him. We trailed around the building again ending up in the basement. Opening the door with a flourish the man beckoned us in. A double bed – not made – and a settee were in a kitchen with a bathroom off. Handing us the key he made a hasty exit. We surveyed our surroundings again and our hearts sank a bit further. My wife went into the bathroom and began cleaning. There were two towels, one Spider Man and one Beauty and the Beast. Hanging our wedding clothes on the fridge freezer, we locked the room and went out to find some lunch.
Result! We found a pool bar and restaurant about a mile away, looking like it should belong to a hotel, maybe that would come later. The waiter spoke good English and we told him where we were going. That was when we found out that the Trikkis Palace Hotel was a huge wedding venue capable of handling two weddings simultaneously and catering for up to six thousand guests and this weekend was their first booking. He was a bit puzzled about us staying there as he didn’t think that they had any accommodation.
Returning to Trikkis about five o‘clock we started to get ready for the seven o’clock reception. The organisation was very good, car park attendants making sure that guests were parking sensibly and going to the right wedding, although on reflection I don’t think it would make much difference if you went to the wrong one!
We approached the entrance, the newlyweds were standing there greeting the guests, a handshake for the groom, a kiss on the cheek for the bride, the best man was next, his job was to take the proffered envelope and drop it into a slot in the top of a huge washing machine sized box. Then Nina and Chris and the Brides’ parents, handshakes and kisses all done we made our way into the banqueting hall. The orderly queue, unheard of in Cyprus normally, moved up to the huge buffet table, Kleftiko, Stifado, Affilia, Chicken then Cyprus roast potatoes and other vegetables were piled onto plates by smartly dressed catering staff. We found a place to sit on a long table. I went to get some drinks the choice was small, bottles of beer, orange juice, or soft drinks. Coming back to the table my wife looked disappointed at the lack of wine. Luckily we had brought a bottle of good quality red wine, which was in our room. After the food I was dispatched to fetch it. There were many looks when we sat with a bottle on our table.
The majority of people ate and then got up to socialise with long lost relatives and generally making sure that people saw them. Then they made their way to the door and left. We of course had met the immediate family the previous Christmas and many of them greeted us. Costas the restaurant owner from Platres invited us over to the family table.
The greeting of the guests continued until about ten thirty when the queue ended. Two men carried the full box of donations into a back room and locked the door. The Bride and Groom came to their places on the family table amid general applause, and were served with their meals by the staff.
After their meal, the band, which had been playing quite softly all night, suddenly broke into very lively traditional dance music. Couples got onto the dance floor and performed precision routines while the crowd cheered and clapped. After that the floor cleared and the happy couple took the centre stage. Beautiful music played and they danced romantically then the centre of the floor slowly began to rise when it was about two metres high they were on display to all of the guests. More applause and much merriment carried on until about midnight. People were leaving so we shook hands with everybody and made our way to our room.

The next morning, we rose early and packed ready to leave. We still hadn’t paid anything for the room, so we went looking. What a transformation. It was a ghost town, the car parks were empty except for our car, the kitchens were deserted, in fact there was no sign of life anywhere except for a Mercedes parked at the rear of the building. Thinking that we would leave the money in the room we made our way back into the basement area. As we went down the corridor a door opened and a man dressed in trousers and a string vest came out it was the gruff voiced Man!
We offered him the money and he said that we should go to the office, going back into his room he donned a shirt and we followed him to the kitchen and administration area. Into the kitchen and he sat us down at a stainless steel table. Fridges were opened and all kinds of leftover unappetising food from the night before were laid before us. He sat down with us and tucked in with gusto. Eventually we got away at about nine thirty and went home, realising that perhaps a little research might have been a good idea. We have been to more Cypriot weddings since and obeyed the rules!