I thought I’d end the week with a quiet little wedding. Because this week needs a quiet little wedding in it, I think. You guys were so thrilled with Tuesday’s international wedding that the time felt right to show you this wedding I got from Hungary, with this charming email from a Hungarian wedding planner and dress designer who love-loved this wedding. (And the picture of the bride praying with the candle? Just SLAYS me. David, looking over my shoulder, said it was very turn-of-the-century, and yes.)
I’ve been wondering for a long time whether I should write this at all. You must receive so many emails anyway and what would a wedding from the other end of the world interest you and your readers? But then, as I feel so strongly about this particular wedding and also seeing you being the person you are, I’m hoping it would make you happy to know that there are simple weddings filled with love in obscure little countries like Hungary too.
The photographer (one of Hungary’s best wedding photographers, Tamás Szipli) also did an amazing job capturing these images, and it is obvious that he was also touched by the people and as he put it, all the love that you could almost touch. It hasn’t been usual for a while in Hungary to get married in folk costumes (for like a 100 years :)), but the bride and the groom run a folk dance club, so our folk heritage is part of their everyday life and they decided that they want to incorporate that into their wedding. They live in the second biggest city of Hungary, not in a village, not on a farm.
As you can see, there is no fancy decor, designer gowns or expensive accessories – just pure, honest, hear-felt love. I myself am a wedding planner and dress desinger in Hungary and even though I was not involved in this wedding I was so touched by it that I felt I have to share it with everyone. It brought tears to my eyes and I hope you will find pleasure looking at the photos.
And with that, I leave you. Y’all are clearly conspiring to make next week truly amazing, with discussions of sex and marriage from a LGBTQ perspective, and what the f*ck does ‘blog-worthy wedding’ mean anyway, and loving being a Doc Marten wearing motorcycle driving almost-stay-at-home wife. It’s going to be awesome. And um, I’ll even write something for you… we’ll see what.
Stunning. The simplicity and honesty of the weddings you’ve been featuring lately is really special and centering. Thanks for sharing!
June 11, 2010 4:55 am
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Beautiful! My friend married a Hungarian girl, they had a Hungarian ceremony and I was jealous that I wasn’t Hungarian!
June 11, 2010 5:10 am
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This is beautiful. Thanks for posting it.
This reminds me a little of the most memorable wedding I’ve ever attended, my friend’s wedding in a Ukrainian village. I would love to see more international weddings, if possible.
June 11, 2010 5:18 am
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I share what I get. As always, people have to send me things, if they want to see them on the blog. I have big readerships in English language countries – UK and Australia – but less in non-English language countries.
June 11, 2010 6:44 am
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Yeah, I guess my comment is to APW in general, as I know people have to submit something before you can post it :)
June 11, 2010 2:40 pm
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Hm, you get me wondering wheter I could send in my (Dutch, and not nearly as special as this Hungarian one, just more down-to-earth than the average wedding) wedding. The problem with non-English-language-countries is that we non-native-English-speakers also don’t WRITE English very well…. (as you can read I’m sure….)
But! I also encourage you ‘other’ brides/grooms to send in your weddings! And I’m sure Meg can help you with the grammar and all… ;)
June 13, 2010 9:06 am
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Send it in without a lot of writing. I can run the pictures, and I can always re-write the information you send if you’d like :)
June 14, 2010 5:15 pm
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Thank you SO much for sharing this. I come from a Hungarian family that fled the country shortly before Hitler’s regime came to full strength, and I think that fleeing made my great-grandparents shed their Hungarian and Jewish traditions in an effort to assimilate into the American way of life as quickly as possible. So the younger generations of our family never got to witness something as lovely as this—now I have some perspective as to how my great-grandparents’ wedding may have looked.
June 11, 2010 5:54 am
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Melissa, I feel you, but for a slightly different reason. My biological father’s family is Hungarian, and also Hungarian Roma, and my grandmother who I never met (because I only met my bio dad’s family 3 years ago), also fled the Nazis, and they also shed their traditions upon arrival in Canada.
June 11, 2010 10:54 am
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Gorgeous!!! I sort of feel like I’m looking into a window of the past. The costumes, love and photos are just perfect!
June 11, 2010 6:01 am
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Love these photos. Although it’s simple, there is so much beauty and culture in them. Having a traditional wedding or one that heavily incorporates culture doesn’t have to be elaborate or stuffy at all- this wedding is a perfect example.
And the mustaches in it are amazing. Really. Love those ‘staches.
June 11, 2010 6:04 am
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I lovelovelove the folk costumes. But my favorite pictures are the ones that could be from any wedding anywhere that a couple has friends and family who love them. Specifically, the two that are centered on hugs (I’m guessing the first is bride & father, and the other is groom & mother) and the one with the open-mouthed little girl.
I want lots and lots of hugs at our wedding. If it is a very huggy wedding I will be a happy lady.
June 11, 2010 6:30 am
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Such peace in the photographs.
June 11, 2010 7:46 am
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A couple summers ago I went on a church choir pilgrimage to Romania, Hungary, and the Czech Republic (we trace the roots of our religion back to Romania and the hilltowns of Transylvania). It was an absolutely mind-blowing trip. The music and singing was amazing, and a big part of our trip, but the culture and heritage of the people was absolutely phenomenal. We did a homestay in our partner village, and it means a lot to me. It’s a very special place, and I am so happy someone submitted this to you– just glorious. Pure joy.
June 11, 2010 7:54 am
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Oh that picture of the bride hugging her (I assume) father kills me. I’ve got tears in my eyes.
June 11, 2010 7:55 am
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Beautiful images. Love the quiet tone of reflection and simplicity. Thanks Meg!
June 11, 2010 8:51 am
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The candle image kills me! It is so heart wrenchingly beautiful.
A great wedding to share, thanks Meg. Happy weekend!
June 11, 2010 9:06 am
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Being from Hungary, I am so happy you shared this! Images from the beautiful country of my birth are rarely shown anywhere, so it’s always nice to see something like this. My husband and I had a very small wedding as well (in Italy), and it was the best choice we could have made. I always tell any bride or groom-to-be who’ll listen that a small wedding with only your closest family & friends and done exactly as you want it is a great way to get married!
June 11, 2010 1:53 pm
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I love this. Absolutely love this. The beauty. The simplicity. The love. I love it. It’s amazing.
June 11, 2010 6:14 pm
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Every single photo has me weeping or smiling… so lovely and so…. “yep, that’s what it’s all about”.
June 11, 2010 10:15 pm
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These photographs are just beautiful.
June 13, 2010 6:24 pm
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I’m catching up on APW reading today! All of this has probably been said but I must chime in . . . these photographs are stunning & beautiful.
June 15, 2010 1:28 pm
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Wow! I have been catching up on older posts, and I am just astonished to see “A Simple Hungarian Wedding”! I am proud to be a Hungarian-American. My father’s parents were able to leave Hungary at the end of WWII, and my father went back to Budapest to study in the late 80′s. He and my mother met in a library and married before they came back to the US. My mother spoke no English at first, so we grew up speaking Hungarian. My sister runs a Hungarian folk dancing group in the Pittsburgh area and I want to honor my heritage as much as possible at my wedding. I definitely hope to have some Hungarian folk music, singing and dancing, as well as Hungarian foods (kolbasz, stuffed cabbage, etc.). Also, my mother has a white silk shawl with Hungarian embroidery which my grandmother (who has passed away) sent from Hungary.
I am just so glad to see Hungarian culture here and I am getting excited again about incorporating as much of it as possible into my own wedding next June!
June 17, 2010 8:11 am
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[...] Szerencsés embernek vallom magamat. Amellett hogy a munkám az életem, szépen gyarapodnak a kölkök is. Nagyon kedves, barátságos párokkal, emberekkel találkozok nap mint nap. Egy téli délután csörgött a telefonom, és magát Grega-Kovács Katalin -ként bemutató kedves női hang azt búgta a fülembe, hogy nagyon szereti a képeimet, van egy esküvői ruhaszalonja , és blogot vezet (megjegyzem nem is ír rosszul – a szerk) , mert élete ez az szépséges világ. Most persze írhatnám azt, hogy küldtem is neki a kért képeket , és már posztolhatta is, de nem lenne igaz. Az év végi hajtásban kiment a fejemből… természetesen. De Ő pár hét múlva ismét megkeresett, nagyon kedvesen, és akkor már erőt vettem magamon, és elküldtem neki a képeket. Ő posztolta, majd nemrégen emailt kaptam tőle, hogy elküldené kíváncsiságból egy igen felkapott amerikai esküvő bloggernek, vajon Ő is azt látja e, amit Mi láttunk a képek mögött. Hát azt látta, és posztolta… no ezért beszél egész Amerika rólam. Íme a cikk!!! [...]
June 22, 2010 11:54 pm
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Hi I hope married from Hungarian <I'm from Lebanon < thanks<
February 22, 2011 6:34 am
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