Are you curious about cultures in Singapore?
Well, one of the best ways to experience Singapore culture is to attend
weddings.
In Singapore, weddings tend to come in various
flavors, from the Chinese to Malay to Indian and Eurasian.
In this article, we will discuss how Chinese,
Malay and Indian weddings are held and experienced in this island state.
Read on and learn more ...
1. Chinese Wedding
The traditional Chinese wedding held in Singapore is typically in a dinner setting, within a large modern hotel with the latest amenities. If you check out the newest hotels like the Ritz Carlton, Swisstotel Stamford, Hotel Intercontinental, you’ll find that they will usually have a wedding every weekend held for a couple. The other thing you’ll see is that during the dinner, there will be a ‘toast’ called ‘Yam Seng’ where the happy couple give a toast to the crowd of a few hundred people. This is usually followed by a ‘speech’ session where the groom or bride speak about how they met, etc. This kind of wedding is critically important to the older generation, who feel that their children must have a ‘grand’ wedding to give their families ‘face’.
2. Malay Wedding
A traditional Malay wedding is held in a Housing Development Board (HDB) void deck and is strewn with beautiful lights. You’ll see the happy couple in Malay garb and seated in a grand seat where they pay respects to their elders and entertain guests. Malays in Singapore are a traditional lot, and usually you will see that they are deep respectful to the family and relatives.
3. Indian Wedding
An Indian wedding is an involved affair, because the amount of preparation and traditional embellishments are very hard to come up with. What you’ll see is the traditional garb and materials which Indians use in marriages in India being brought over to Singapore. Granted many Indian couples don’t really go traditional these days (what with Western influence) but some of the more traditional Indians still do so to pay respect to their elders.
Conclusion
You’ll find that you’re intrigued by the different varieties of weddings in Singapore. If you want to experience Singapore culture in a different way, one of the best approaches is to go to a local wedding. It’s definitely a good way to see a different side of Singapore as compared to the simple shopping and sightseeing tours in many ‘standard’ travel packages.
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