Novomanzelia Zuzka and Martin

Today I attended a Slovak wedding, and it was beautiful! I want to say congratulations to the newlyweds (novomanzelia) Martin and Zuzka (previously Ziskova) Pivkova. In Slovakia, the woman and men have the same base for a surname, but the woman's name always ends in "ova." The ceremony was held at the Evangelical church in Hybe today at 4:00 and it was very nice! Zuzka looked beautiful, she had one of the most unique and gorgeous wedding dresses I've ever seen! I attended the wedding as a guest (I'm friends with Zuzka, and have only met Martin one time...don't know him very well, but he's very nice!), and also Mladis (our youth group, which Zuzka is a very active part of) sang! It was really fun! We rehearsed last night and prepared the sound system in the church, and then practiced again today before the ceremony, and I must say that I think we sounded really nice! They gave me a cheat sheet, luckily, so I didn't have to try and memorize all of the Slovak lyrics. The name of the song we sang was "Piesen pre Michaelu" (Song for Michael) by Kompromis, and it's a really great song. I will be bringing a copy of it back home with me, and would love for all of you to hear it! We sang it because Zuzka really loves the song, and the group. I sang with my host sisters, the pastor, and 7 others. The chorus translates to something like this:

"There's only one way we want to go,
only You, God, You show us the light,
we can only come towards You,
for You we have hearts that beat."

From what I saw at my Slovak wedding experience, I think that Slovak and American weddings are quite similar. But there are of course differences, most of all in the events that take place before the ceremony itself starts. In traditional Slovak weddings, the groom's company (his family and close friends) accompany him to the house of his fiance. In the house, the man officially asks permission again to marry and take their daughter. After permission is given, the new bride and groom, along with their families and friends, all walk in a procession to the church. Some of us were waiting at the church already, but a majority of the wedding guests came with the processional group. They played "Here Comes the Bride" loudly on the organ as the guests entered the church. The song finished just as Zuzka the bride started to walk down the aisle, and softer music played in the background as she walked toward the front. She was linked in arms with her dad, and Martin also walked down the aisle in front of her, linked in arms with his mom (what I assumed, anyway).

The ceremony started with a small sermon from the pastor, and the couple stood at the beginning of the aisle as they listened, maybe 15-20 feet behind. After Pastor was finished, they moved up closer to the front and kneeled at the altar. There they repeated their vows, individually and some were said together, and eventually exchanged rings. After the rings were exchanged, the Mladis youth group sang the song while Martin and Zuzka looked on. Next, Pastor took Martin and Zuzka over to a table set up in the front corner, and together they signed the marriage license documents together. Also Martin's brother and Zuzka's cousin (they didn't have bridesmaids or groomsmen) signed because they were the two witnesses who stood behind the couple for part of the ceremony. As the ceremony finished the organ played the traditional song that we play at the end of weddings, and Martin and Zuzka led everyone out of the church. Like our weddings, the couple waited outside the door so that everyone could congratulate them on their way out. When I went through I congratulated Zuzka in English (her English is pretty good!), and I wasn't sure if Martin spoke any English, so I asked a friend how I should properly congratulate him. I said in Slovak, "I wish you much happiness with Zuzka," and kissed both him and Zuzka on the cheeks (traditional way to greet and/or congratulate each other). Martin smiled at me and said, "Thank you very much!" in English! It was nice. They are a really sweet couple together.

When everyone had made it through the line, the bridge and groom left the gates of the church and got into their car, which was decorated with white ribbons. Traditional folk music was playing in the background as they got in, and as they walked out people threw cukriky (candies) at them (like we would throw bird seed, or blow bubbles). They also had a bus waiting behind the get-a-way car for the family members and close friends of the couple. They proceeded on to a celebration/dinner party. One difference between American and Slovak wedding traditions is that for Slovak weddings, many people attend the ceremony, but only close friends and family celebrate afterwards at a party. At the ceremony, the people in the processional sat in the pews at the front, as well as on the side pews, and there were many people up in the balcony watching over. The people in the balcony weren't personally invited by the couple, but still attended the wedding to watch, and they were all up in the balcony casually dressed.

I made a card in English to give to Zuzka and Martin (along with Zuzka Ziskova..they both used to be Zuzka Ziskova until today, but now it's Zuzka Ziskova and Zuzka Pivkova...confusing...), and it had a poem in English, and another wedding greeting in English, as well as a sticker with a nice verse and quote. We also gave them pink flowers, and took photos together with Zuzka. Sweet! :-)

CONGRATULATIONS again to the newlyweds, Martin Pivko and Zuzka Pivkova!