Fairy Mahdzan: A Malay Wedding in the Kampung

This is me at a McDonald's in Thamrin-Jakarta which had a screening contraption installed right at the entrance. Authorities were taking precautions against idiots who have nothing else better to do but bomb American franchises in the city (as occured in Makassar just after Hari Raya 2002)

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A Malay Wedding in the Kampung
by fairy (7-Sep-2003) \| Readers Say

When was the last time you attended a Malay kenduri kahwin (wedding) in the rural area of a kampung? If you've never attended one and are curious to know more about it, then this article will be of some enlightenment to you. A week ago, I was in Perlis (in the northern part of Peninsular Malaysia) to attend a relative's wedding and today I will show you a little bit of what goes on in a typical kampung wedding.

My uncle Pak Long's house is in a kampung called Jejawi, located in the heart of where my father was born and grew up. Sawah padi (paddy fields) and pokok kelapa (coconut trees) are prominent features of the landscape.

The road to Pak Long's house is still only wide enough to allow one car to move in one direction at a time.

If another car is coming in from the opposite direction, one car will eventually have to give way by gingerly pulling to the side of the narrow road to let the other vehicle through.

God help you if there's a muddy sawah padi right next to your car. If so, then you proceed cautiously on a wing and a prayer.

And what happens if you come across a group of ladies walking down the same road?

Well, either you slow your car down, or if you're mean, you speed up a little to scare them into thinking they're in some walking marathon, hehe!

We were finally approaching the wedding venue. Because the wedding fell on Merdeka day, a Malaysian flag is proudly hoisted on a tall bamboo pole to commemorate our 46th independence day.

Once we had arrived, we were greeted by our many relatives clad in colorful Malay attires, as were we. Malays really love bright colors for their formal clothing.

That's Pak Long's house in its traditional design splendor. Malay houses in the kampung were typically made out of strong wood and were mostly on stilts to protect the people inside from wild animals like slithering snakes and crawling giant lizards (biawak).

My uncle has since renovated his house but retained its original stilt foundation; the house is now partial brick, partial wood. He has converted the house's bottom portion into a living room for guests when it used to be an empty lot. The neat window doors with the railings are a common feature in traditional Malay houses. When morning comes, the family inside would open all the windows to let rezeki (good fortune) in.

A Communal Affair, indeed!

Weddings that take place in the kampung are extremely communal affairs; chances are if you're a friend of the groom or bride's parents, you will help the family by participating in the wedding operations.

For example, you might be heavily involved with cooking the food to be served to the wedding guests.

I was told that not one, not two, but three kampungs of people were expected to turn up for the wedding! Therefore a lot of food had to be prepared. The men here are making kurma ayam, which is chicken cooked with kurma seasoning and coconut milk. It's rich and very delicious especially when eaten with white rice.

You can see the man in the white shirt pouring out the santan, or coconut milk, into the mix, as the bloke in blue literally uses a dayung (an oar) to stir the bubbling dish!

Row, row, row your gravy, gently in the pot!

Mr. Blue is obviously having the time of his life stirring all those ingredients inside the big pot with his wooden oar! The huge pile of wood you see in the background is use to make the cooking fire.

I startled this nice old lady when I took her picture, causing her to spill some of that lovely chicken gravy she was handling! ("Oh mak pocot!") :)

And of course, if you're expecting three villages of guests to attend your wedding, you have to have a team of dishwashers, ready to take up the task of plate cleaning with speed and efficiency! Here they all are, ready and poised for action. No dirty plate will stand a chance of escaping!

Makan time!

All the photographing of people cooking has had me worked up an appetite! It's time to makan! Since everyone eats rice the traditional way, i.e. with their hands, these teapots were laid on the tables everywhere.

This particular teapot set, which is called kendi in Malay, contains clean water with which people use to wash their fingers prior to and after eating. (Please don't pour the water into a glass to drink; you'd look really silly doing that!) You'd lift the pot, pour a bit of water onto your right hand which you'd hover over the base as you wash; the base is supposed to catch all the used water.

When the kendi base is already full, the dirty water will be thrown out and fresh water is once again filled into the kendi teapots.

Since there were so many people present, my uncle decided to serve lunch in a practical, buffet style.

There's that yummy kurma ayam chicken dish on the most left. There were two types of rice being served: nasi putih (plain white rice) and the aromatic nasi briyani (briyani rice). The briyani rice was very popular and was always the first rice to run out.

Since this is a kampung area, people are more conservative and therefore proceed to sit in segregated areas separated by sexes. Here you see the ladies and children chomping away in their self-designated territory. The men were located on the other side of the turf.

As you're eating, you'll be presented with a small token of appreciation from the host, usually in the form of a boiled egg wrapped in colorful decorations usually called bunga telur. But at my cousin's wedding, sweets in cute paper bags were given away. Children are more appreciative of candy than boiled eggs. I know I'd be. :P

That's my niece, Naneen, helping out with the distribution of the sweets.

The Live Band!

What indeed is a wedding without music! My uncle had invited a group of musicians from a nearby kampung to play at his son's wedding, and the music played is a unique type of Malay traditional music called gendang keling (also referred to as gendang tari inai). It is music specialty of the northern states of Kedah and Perlis typically played at weddings.

There were four men playing the gendang keling music: a serunai player, a gong beater and two drummers.

Instead of trying to describe to you what the music sounds like, why don't you watch and listen!

Video clip is 30 seconds long.
Thank you to MK84.com for post-production.

I was particularly fascinated with the wind instrument called serunai. If you've ever heard Thai traditional music before, especially the music that is played just before a Thai kick boxing tournament, the sound of this Malay serunai is similar to that of the Thai's. It is not surprising actually, considering that Perlis is very near to Thailand, so some assimilation of the two cultures is to be expected.

What's even more interesting is how this serunai was being played by the man. Throughout the duration of the music playing, we noticed that the player had a unique way of inhaling his breaths in such a way that the serunai sound was continuous with no breaks in between! It was amazing indeed.

Fairy speaking with the band members of the 'gendang keling'

I kneeled down to speak with the old timers; they were very friendly and were probably pleased that a youngster such as me took so much interest in learning more about the music that they played. I asked the man with the red checker shirt to name me the two particular drums that were being played in the music, and he gave me the most classic answer which sort of stunned me:

Ha' tu gendang besaq (pointing to the big drum), ha' ni gendang kecik (pointing to smaller drum)!
(Translation: That's the big drum, and that's the little drum!)

I honestly was expecting a more glamorous name for the drums! So gendang 'besaq' and gendang' kecik' they were.

In case anyone's confused about the drums explanation, please refer to photo with descriptions below:

That plate of daun sirih (beetle nut leaves) are a treat for the band players who would roll the leaves up with a little bit of kapur (chalk) and chew them like we would bubble gum. Old people seem to like sirih very much. I've tried chewing some before as a child when my dad tricked me into thinking that it tasted sweet. It was anything but sweet! I didn't like the taste at all; daun sirih is very pahit (bitter!) and makes your mouth all red. I spat the remnants out in a hurry, of course!

All this talk about kampung weddings and we have yet to see the Raja Sehari ("king of the day")! The cousin in question finally made his groom-like appearance.

Two guesses on who the groom is!

Now, the groom is dressed in a fancy yellow baju Melayu with a sampin wrapped around his waist. Tucked in his sampin is a commonly used wedding accessory, a keris (Malay dagger, you know, to make him look all macho). The headgear on Kamal's head is called a tengkolok, which is commonly worn by Malay sultans even today especially for formal ceremonies.

That old man next to cousin Kamal is (I honestly have no clue who he is, but anyway) in charge of chaperoning the groom to his bride who is to arrive with her own party of people.

While the groom waits for his bride, we pried him away from his escort for a digital Olympus moment.

My sisters, cousins, nieces, nephews, and uncle are seen in this photo.

I'm almost embarrassed to say this, but we didn't stick around for the bride to arrive; she was taking too long to reach the house and we were already running late with our Padang Besar plans! Hence the lack of bride pictures. (My, what fine relatives we make.)

Attending this wedding has made me better appreciate and value my Malay roots, so I'm really glad I decided to leave the hustle and bustle of city life for a few days to be with my family in my Dad's kampung.

External sites:

Google search for Malay wedding
More about Gendang Keling music

WHAT READERS SAY ABOUT A Malay Wedding in the Kampung:

#62. saya singgah jp kt kmu page........
just 2 help u, sya pn tgh ciapkn asgmen tntang tjuk yg sma ngan kmu........sya dh antar malay wedding culture.......
hope dpt bantu......
Posted by ija on 27-Aug-2008, 17:43 MYT

#61. Malay Wedding
With great pleasure, we thank the family of Encik Abu Hashim especially the bride Irenna Abu Hashim; the groom Raja Shaiffulizam and the mother of the bride Puan Maznah, who gave us the permission to put these pages on the net. And we wish and pray that the couple (in Malay) Selamat Pengantin Baru; Semoga Berkekalan sehingga ke Anak Cucu Irenna, (the Bride) Her Father, Mother and Family FriendsThe small decorated stage is called 'pelamin' - bridal stage

Our intention to log these pages are purely for the surfers and the netizens to get to know our Malaysian Malay Culture and at the same time to view the beauty of Malaysian Malay Wedding Costumes

Bertunang / Engagement
This is an article on an actual Malay Wedding Ceremony. The bride is our cousin "Irenna" and the name of the groom is "Raja Shaiffulizam".
Well, like many other presant days young couples, they were friends at first, then lovers courting for a numbers of years. They felt that they cannot part one another, got to get the blessing from parents of both sides.
Then it was followed by the engagement or bertunang ceremony. The bride in her best waiting patiently in her room for the party on behalf of the groom who are supposed to be here by 8.00 pm. Here we see Encik Hashim standing on the steps infront of his house waiting for the party or group of elders and on behalf of the groom to propose the hands of their daughter 'Irenna' Here comes the party and the leader is explaining the 'hantaran', and with pantun (Malay old poem) are expressing their intention of .... trying to get the permission of the owner of this beautiful garden to pick for the groom the flower that is blooming in Encik Hashim garden. And so on ..... bla-bla...bla.... After the long bla...bla by the leader of the party, and after all are satisfied and terms agreed, a member from the groom's put on a ring on a finger of Irenna, signifying that she's engaged to the owner of the ring. After the 'bertunang', they are officially confirm by all parties that they are now fiance and fiancee. Hantaran / Pemberian - gift whether in the form of money or things given by a husband to a wife at the time of the marriage - [ Islamic Family Law Enactment

Aqad Nikah
A certain period lapsed for both sides to get settled and ready for the day and date of the actual marriage Nikah ceremony.

Today is the day, where Irenna's father witnessed by the Religious Officer and the families of both sides holding the hand of Raja Shaiffulizam in a solemn and serious instant will wed Raja Shaiffulizam to his daughter 'Irenna' with the 'maskahwin' of RM..... cash.
Encik Abu Hashim in Red & Raja Shaifullizam in white Malay 'Baju'
As soon as Encik Abu Hashim stops those solemn words, Raja Shaiffulizam has to reply in a breath that he agrees to be wedded and be husband to 'Irenna' with the 'maskahwin' of RM.... cash. After being confirmmed by the relegious officers and the witnesses, the 'Doa Selamat' - was read. They (Raja Shaifullizam & Irenna) are now officially husband and wife

FootNote:-
Maskahwin according to the Islamic Law means - the obligatory payment inconnection with a marriage or for any other cause in accordance with the Hukum Syarak whether in the form of money or things - [Islamic Law Enactment].

Mas Kahwin
To further complete the ceremony the 'Mas Kahwin' is officially handed over to the bride.
The Groom hands over the Mas Kahwin and received by the bride.This is done and witnessed by the mother and the unties of the lady's side in the bride's chamber.
After receiving the Mas Kahwin and as an appreation of thanks the bride, now officially the wife kisses the hands of the groom, now the husband. Then the first phothograph of the couple, now the newly husband & wife are shot together with their parent at the 'pelamin' or bridal stage.

Berinai
Then the occasions are followed by the 'Majlis Berinai' - Berinai Ceremony. The Groom left the residence of the bride to change to a different set of costumes. When the groom comes back this time he will be received by a 'Kompang Group'. The bride with the same colour of costumes invited the groom, and they are escorted to a beautifully decorated bridal stage called 'pelamin' in Malay.

Here they are seated side by side, this is called 'bersanding' in Malay and the families, led by the elders take turn to perform the berinai.

The 'berinai or menepung-tawar' is being performed by an auntie "Mak Long Maimon".
The ceremony ends at about 11.00 pm and it will be continued the next day for the 'Hari Langsung'- Final Day.

Foot Note:-
Inai - henna; Lawsonia inermis [Malay English Dictionary by R.O.Winstedt]

Hari Langsung

Date:- 24 Jan. 1999
Day:- Sunday
Today is the auspicious day for the family of Abu Hashim bin Talib and his wife Maznah binti Lazzan.
Most of the close relatives had already gathered since a few days ago. Last night was the 'Majlis Aqad Nikah' and followed by the 'Majlis Berinai.'
We all woke early today to assist the family to get things in order before the guest arrived. The actual 'Majlis Bersanding' is scheduled at about 12.30 pm. Before the Majlis Bersanding they had the 'Majlis Khatam Alquran', Irenna flaked by her cousins, read verses of the Holy Quran signifying that they had completed all the Chapters of the AlQuran. This was led by the Village's Ladies Group who also recites the Marhaban the Verses of Arabic Chorus praising god and the prophet.
The guests starts to roll in at about 11.00 am, and were invited to the big canvas tent where they were served with buffet styled 'nasi briani' - Briyani Rice and other foods.

Here comes the groom led by elders, stops and waited about 100 metres from the bride's residence, here again they are greeted by the 'Kompang' group.
The bride comes forward to greet the groom and later together they walk towards the house.
Walking together towards the house led by elders, bunga manggar both sides followed by the kompang group, and behind them are the friends & relatives of the groom.

Hari Langsung
Oh No !! The bride got through. Here is a road block, they have to pay toll in order to get to the 'pelamin' or the bridal stage.

Pak Daud, is checking them, a token sum is paid in order to pass through him.

After much bargaining, and further more he is going to be part of our family, I'll let him to the stage - says Pak Daud.
Another series of Majlis Berinai or Menepung Tawar continues again. And as a closing event Encik Hashim was invited to do the said ritual.
Raja Shaiffulizam, kisses his father-in-law's hands & and as from now on he calls Encik Hashim - PAPA/FATHER and no more PAKCIK.

Makan Berdamai
After the Majlis Bersanding and Berinai, all the guest that came together with the groom were invited to the feast. The Feast Fit For the King. Well as you know, the bride and groom are treated as a king today. Malay says " Raja Sehari" roughly translated as King for the day.

Here we have the king helping the queen to a spoon of nasi briani.

Now the queen does the same. [Careful, Open your mouth bigger Shaiful !!.....Gulp]
Semoga Panjang Umur & Murah Rezeki Kepada Kedua Mempelai dari Kami Di AcaiMoza homepage
[We from AcaiMoza homepage wish both the couple for long life and destined for good fortune, and they ..... I think you know the Ending .......happily ever after]

Once again we would like to express our thanks to all concerned, for permitting us to get this pages on the Web, & please note that what we practice might not be practiced by others.
[ Email:- MOZA ]

Hakcipta © AcaiMoza homepage.

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Posted by ija on 27-Aug-2008, 17:39 MYT

#60. I'm a bit surprised that a number of people are using this article as a reference to history papers. But at the same saya sangat senang hati.
Posted by Fairy on 24-May-2007, 09:50 MYT

#59. Thanks a lot... These pics are damned lovely, you've helped me a lot for my history project... thanks again!!
Posted by ImanAzlan - Website on 24-May-2007, 00:06 MYT

#58. your way of explaining each pictures are humourous and fun.I've never been to an original kg weddings before so I wouldn't know dat it's very interesting if I didn't read ur article.neway,thanx 4 da info..
Posted by s.athirah on 23-May-2007, 22:00 MYT

#57. thanks a very much.It'l help a bunch on my history project! seriousyl thanks a lot and your a good reporter!
Posted by pravin on 14-May-2007, 20:53 MYT

#56. thanx for the lovely picture and also penerangan. senang skit i nak buat kerja khusus sejarah ni! cantik btul kampung tu!
Posted by nazuha on 29-Mar-2007, 20:51 MYT

#55. YOU r a gd rporter....congrate 2 u k bcause u make me more appreciate to have a beautiful malay culture...-da-
Posted by af on 28-Mar-2007, 13:19 MYT

#54. its a great article. im glad to know that there are people who still care about their heritage and culture. good for you.
Posted by Miza - Website on 21-Feb-2007, 00:06 MYT

#53. hei..indeed a nice h/page..do u have any other website further more bout the traditional costumes??really need your help b'coz i have to run a fashion show abroad..thanx a lotss
Posted by angelwitch on 22-Jan-2007, 22:22 MYT

#52. klaka gak ape yg awk tlis .sy kna wat assigment psl adat perkahwinan melayu johor tp tak tau nk cr gmbr kt mne.ape2 pn tahniah
Posted by ada on 2-Dec-2006, 14:13 MYT

#51. Aunty Rom and Phil, I am happy that you liked this article on a typical Malay kampung wedding.
Posted by Fairy on 17-Sep-2006, 15:45 MYT

#50. Wah... your malay kampong wedding write up is the best article so far on weddings. I will use this to explain to foreigners on a malay wedding ceremony. Congrats. You are a great reporter/ observer of malay weddings. You make it sound and look sooooo beautiful.
Posted by Aunty Rom - Website on 15-Sep-2006, 18:13 MYT

#49. Terima kasih.

Thank you for sharing that. I really enjoyed reading it and finding out more as one of my Malay friends will be getting married soon too.

Nice website!

Cheers,

Phil
Posted by Phil on 26-May-2006, 15:29 MYT

#48. nice article!
Posted by AZHIER - Website on 9-Jan-2006, 14:56 MYT

#47. Jiko tengok gambar di ateh tu, ingatkan denai dek Kampung denai di Kampung Serdang, Siak Hulu, Kampar, Riau. Kenduri kawin selalunyo sedio Nasi Minyak, Rendang, Gulai…hhmm masih banyak lai… Dress code: Baju kurung, Kebaya Labuh buek nan pompuan, Lakinyo babaju taluk balango…ehh at least baju batik lah. Tari-tarian : Zapin Kampar. Muzik : Orkes Melayu Asli. Makan bajamba, tigo-ampek orang senampan…aih lemaknyo… Bilo saudara2 mara berkunjung ke Negeri Riau ? Balik Rayo sabantar lai...aih gulai ikan patin emak bamain di palupuk mato
Posted by Dang Merdu_riau on 26-Oct-2005, 13:18 MYT

#46. Stumble upon your site while searching some info about Malay wedding...in my best friend's wedding, kompang rules! :p
Posted by @LOW@ - Website on 21-Aug-2005, 20:53 MYT

#45. This is what I was looking for.. a kampung wedding. Bored looking at the city, lavish wedding
Posted by nana - Website on 23-Jun-2005, 10:52 MYT

#44. Sounds wonderful. I would luv to attend a Malay wedding in the village. Thanks 4 the info, I have a group project on Malay wedding customs : food,
clothes, ect. I visit one page, I got it all! I enjoyed the music. I'll describe it 4 the project. I'll have to write it in the 3rd person tho'. Farah Mahdzah has a great sense of humour!Don't 4get me!
Posted by Elodea - Website on 13-Jun-2005, 15:14 MYT

#43. Nice to be there.hopefully, I will bring my families to any states of malaysia for special wedding,until invited. thank you.
Posted by roslan khamis on 19-Oct-2003, 20:18 MYT

#42. malay wedding in kampung is real fun...here families,relatives,f rienz come together and help each other...its real fun..
Posted by ariadNa on 14-Oct-2003, 12:13 MYT

#41. plz help me,because now i'm doing my final project my concept is malay wedding culture..so,i need a lot of information..especia lly bout their clothes..songket and so on..
Posted by fini on 25-Sep-2003, 15:46 MYT

#40. brings back good memories..havent been to a real kampung wedding in a long time
Posted by nerrie on 16-Sep-2003, 15:54 MYT

#39. Hehe, Lissa, jangan tak tau, mahal nak tengok Fairy pakai baju kurung tau! Kalau ikutkan hati aku nak pakai jeans and baby t je tapi sungguh lah tak sopan kan. I will not hear the end of it from ma and pa nanti.
Posted by Fairy on 14-Sep-2003, 18:41 MYT

#38. "Ha, pahtu bila dok makan sure ada some friendly makcik sembang with u, and u suddenly speak in this 'nice malay girl' voice (as opposed to ur normal loud voice)". teringat siot! lapaq lauk kenduri....

fai pakai baju kurung! hehe. comel la.
Posted by lissa on 13-Sep-2003, 09:35 MYT

#37. I can't reply ur e-mail Farah, something's wrong somewhere.
Posted by oya on 12-Sep-2003, 13:32 MYT

#36. Fuh, tak kenal aa Lutfi. Ternyata Perlis besaq jugak
Posted by Fairy on 12-Sep-2003, 00:56 MYT

#35. her name is arina..
Posted by lutfi on 12-Sep-2003, 00:43 MYT

#34. basrie, in my family so far, my parents are the ones with the PhDs. I got my bachelor's degree 2 years ago.
Posted by Fairy on 11-Sep-2003, 15:09 MYT

#33. Rupa-rupanya ini laman web keluarga. Keluarga educated gitu. Fairy belajar pHD juga ke?
Posted by basrie on 11-Sep-2003, 14:58 MYT

#32. Nash, our cultures are not so different as we think they are. It's always exciting for me to learn that there are other cultures out there that are similar to mine, that sort of explains my deep interest in Indonesia.

BTW, I wonder what your other top 4 favorite articles are.
Posted by Fairy on 10-Sep-2003, 16:30 MYT

#31. Fairy, truly, I though you went to our place to cover a wedding ceremony. This is the same how wedding ceremony conducted in our place. No wonder, we were sultanate before Philippines emerge from nowhere. This is another great article - within my top 5 if you only have a kind of poll.
Posted by Nash on 10-Sep-2003, 15:53 MYT

#30. Yup yup Kusri, makan pakai tangan itu ada artnya tersendiri. Siapa tahu saya rajin bikin tutorial makan nasi pakai tangan ya. Bisa jadi bahasan menarik.

Bigg, no no, no dodol was made for this wedding. I think you rindu Hari Raya lah. I wrote that 'kurma ayam' was being cooked in those big pots. In Indonesia, I believe the term is "opor ayam."

I'm sure other kenduris serve food ala carte, but for my uncle's son's wedding, buffet style was just more practical. Tiga kampung mari oo.. siapa larat buat ala carte.
Posted by Fairy on 9-Sep-2003, 18:20 MYT

#29. is that dodol in that huge periuk?

wow, buffet? no more lauk hidang/ala carte?

thanks for this entry. I simply miss the kampung spirit. the gotong-royong part potrayed is a gem!

well, the only kampung we have here is on a island 10 mins away from here. Pulau Ubin.
Posted by bigg - Website on 9-Sep-2003, 17:58 MYT

#28. betul, wastafel itu dari Bahasa Belanda. I agree 100 Fairy, apalagi kalau makan masakan Sunda or Padang food, nggak 'sreg' /doesn't feel right kalau nggak pakai tangan. First you wet your hand, then you make this little cup of rice with just the upper part of your hand...haha, that's how I teach my expat friends to eat pakai tangan.
Posted by Kusri on 9-Sep-2003, 16:38 MYT

#27. I found out the proper Malay name for the hand-washing teapot set: KENDI. I've edited this article to reflect this name.

In the kampungs, it's common to see people eat with their hands, and certainly it saves dishwashers time as there are less things to wash! I personally hate washing spoons and forks after I eat.

At weddings that are carried out in hotels, people normally use cutlery to eat their food. More proper, I suppose.

But sometimes food especially rice tastes sooo much better when eaten with the hand. I know some will agree with me.

Kursi, wastafel in Bahasa Malaysia is SINKI, from the English word sink. Wastafel is of Dutch origin isn't it.
Posted by Fairy on 9-Sep-2003, 16:04 MYT

#26. Tinpot method is surely new for me. Very unique! I like it. Mungkin di Sumatra kayak begini juga? So this means the guest eat pakai tangan? In Indonesian wedding, well at least Javanese and Sundanese ones since I'm from there, makannya biasanya buffet/prasmanan terus standing party pula. But there is an exception, once in Yogyakarta my friend married a royalty and they do it differently: makan 5 course secara 'bergelombang', jadi tamu2 pada duduk kayak penonton terus dateng tuh appetizer, after they finished the appetizer terus datang 2nd course and so on until dessert. Jadi kalau terlambat datang, will surely miss something. I don't know if it's uniquely Yogya or not, but most of the time we don't wash our hand since we use knife/fork... kalaupun musti cuci tangan, biasanya ya di wastafel (apa ya bahasa Melayu nya?).
Posted by Kusri on 9-Sep-2003, 14:29 MYT

#25. nasi minyak is one of the greatest recipes in the world!!!!!

especially nasi minnyak kenduri kawin!
i just cant get enough!!!!
Posted by zack on 9-Sep-2003, 13:32 MYT

#24. Yes, it's dirty. But I'll go with a sink
Posted by Wira-d - Website on 9-Sep-2003, 12:29 MYT

#23. The bowl method is not very hygenic, especially when you're washing your hands after you eat. You'll get all those bits of rice, oil, gravy and God knows what else floating in the water for all to see! I say the teapot way is much cleaner!
Posted by Fairy on 9-Sep-2003, 11:22 MYT

#22. I think some regions in Indonesia do use teapots or something similiar to wash hands, some also use a small bowl filled with clean water that is used to dip your hand in it.
Posted by Wira-d - Website on 9-Sep-2003, 10:10 MYT

#21. Noreen: The buffaloes were probably at the back helping out with the dish washing LOL. My brother in law was almost getting impatient waiting for the ladies to walk, he was edging them on a little too close for my taste Kesian betul.

MK: Good resource there dude! Lat's Kampung Boy book is definitely a gem if you want to learn more about Malay weddings (and the Malay circumcision ceremony!) via cartoons.

Lutfi: Who's your friend?

Adhe: Iya ramai ya huhu. That basin's big enough to wash a couple of goats!

Ervan: Is that right? I would have assumed the Indonesians have something similar to the hand-washing system with the teapot. Will someone from Indonesia clarify this for me?
Posted by Fairy on 9-Sep-2003, 09:50 MYT

#20. he he, the tin teapot... I remember that, how many people were tricked thinking it was drinking water.... like an Indonesian guest of mine...

"Lho, ini bukan air minum ya?"

or a Mat Salleh

"Jeez, and I thought this was drinking water!"

he he
Posted by ervan on 9-Sep-2003, 07:54 MYT

#19. Huaaa rame bangeeett... Ga kebayang degh.. apalagi yg pasukan pencuci piringnya dgn bak air sebegitu besarnya.. ck ck ck... open minding banget ttg dapur sebuah wedding huekekekeks
Posted by Adh3 - Website on 9-Sep-2003, 01:59 MYT

#18. well.. my perlis friend said that her cousin getting married also.. maybe you girls are related.. he he he.. since perlis is so small..
Posted by lutfi on 9-Sep-2003, 00:06 MYT

#17. Thanks, Farah...
There are so many different traditions, I don't even know anymore what is the "correct" version.

The pictures are fantastic, btw... especially the makciks blocking the car pictures. That is really typical in malay kpgs around wedding times. Really reminds me of my kampung too! Now just add some kerbau on the side it will really take me back to Kpg. Budu, Pahang......
Posted by Noreen on 8-Sep-2003, 20:20 MYT

#16. I think the merisik part is common for central region right?

One good way to learn about Malay wedding is Lat's Kampung Boy book.
Posted by MK84 on 8-Sep-2003, 20:20 MYT

#15. Noreen, this story on Malay wedding is a rather watered down version if you will, I only wrote about the things I saw, didn't exactly go into the whole merisik-bersanding thing. In fact in Perlis, there is no such thing as bersanding.

In case anyone is wondering, the act of BERSANDING is when the bride and groom are both seated on two thrones on the pelamin or bridal stage where they are presented to the guests. It is during bersanding also that the parents and relatives come forth and pour rose scented water onto the couple's hands as an act of blessing.

Not all Malay cultures practice bersanding, as such in Perlis. Bersanding is thought to have originated from Indian culture.

Noreen, I added a link to some Malay wedding resources using Google search, so hopefully you and others will find them useful.
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 19:56 MYT

#14. Fairy,

GREAT article.... I was trying to explain the malay wedding ceremonies (yes, from merisik all the way to bersanding in the thrid or fourth reception) to my Dutch boyfriend.

Needless to say, I think I confused him a bit with our rituals. Been trying to explain to him exactly what is the symbolism to all the actions we make and the objects we used, and why. I pon tak tau most of them!!

I also told him about the pantun-ing session that occurs in some villages.... I think I confused him more by saying the first two lines have no relevance to the last two ones, which are the important ones... you know...

I'll send him your url.. it's great to show him via pictures how this works out. hehe.

love ya!
Noreen

Posted by Noreen on 8-Sep-2003, 19:26 MYT

#13. Wira.. oo gitu yaaa..
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 12:58 MYT

#12. Go figure
Posted by Wira-d - Website on 8-Sep-2003, 12:49 MYT

#11. Wuih, Wira, calculation apaan tu?
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 11:27 MYT

#10. 27-17 = 10
Masih lama... hehehehehe
Posted by Wira-d - Website on 8-Sep-2003, 11:20 MYT

#9. Iya Ryan, kalau ga salah ada rendang juga. Hmmm.
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 10:56 MYT

#8. makan rendang makan rendang....wah kayaknya ada rendang nieee di panci tuh haaa??nyum nyummm ...
Posted by ryan on 8-Sep-2003, 10:51 MYT

#7. Nice to see malay custom of wedding.
From the pictures, I can see it quite similar from wedding party in my home town in lombok, indonesia. Traditional food, music, clothes etc are all over the place. in my place, usually traditional wedding performed in the house of the groom, while more modern ones in a wedding hall.
Posted by jamal on 8-Sep-2003, 09:25 MYT

#6. Wira, Indonesian and Malay cultures are closely related anyway, so I wouldn't be too surprised. In fact it is to be expected that we share many similarities.
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 09:23 MYT

#5. I've been to some weddings in Indonesia, and they're pretty similiar to what you described here. The clothes, the food, even the atmosphere
Posted by Wira-d - Website on 8-Sep-2003, 03:49 MYT

#4. hi Sajen, orang Johor eh? I like listening to traditional music, especially when played live. It sounds really unique and mystic and it brings about a sense of pride, I think. Anything with gamelan sounds drives me over the wall too, I think it's beautiful.
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 02:36 MYT

#3. live band pakai gendang, how traditional! the music was lively..mcm nak berpencak silat plak! kat Johor sometimes we got ghazal played..tp skrg being replaced by those kampung-originated rock bands by the youngsters..
Posted by sajen asan - Website on 8-Sep-2003, 02:28 MYT

#2. Welcome home Jeroen, hope to see some photos from your Indonesian trip! Can't wait.
Posted by Fairy on 8-Sep-2003, 01:55 MYT

#1. Nice to see some traditional culture. I'm back from Indonesia since yesterday, and I hope to see some nice pictures as well, too bad it's still not a digital camera, next time I will have one for sure!

Yerun / Jeroen dari Belanda
Posted by Yerun - Website on 8-Sep-2003, 01:50 MYT