Marriage #1

Well, folks Deepal and I are officially married now. ..Or May 15th, rather. I am writing this several days after the fact. Here is a picture of the Court Office where the ceremony took place:

Deepal and I came here together in February/March to do all the paperwork to set it up so we could marry on May 15th. In India, you have to put in all the paperwork at least one month before you can be legally married. I think it's to give people time to oppose the marriage. We had to wait two months because the tourist visa I have does not allow you to re-enter the country for two months once you have left it. So we came in March and filled out lots of forms and waited in line at the window like you can see those men doing. Then at the end of the process the official came out and asked for a bribe to give us the marriage date we wanted. All of this so we could come and get married in May.

Why a court marriage you ask? Because the United States does not accept a Hindu wedding as legal if both parties are not hindu. So this was for the U.S.

Here we are waiting outside the office. Filling out yet more paperwork: 

This is Deepal and I seated inside the office at a desk. We will sign the papers now: 

 

Here is Deepal and I reading the legal statement that we accept each other as our lawful spouse. Luckily for me it was in English. ;) This concluded the legal procedures. You can see the red throne chairs in the back, though. That's for the benefit of the families and new couple, and that's where we are headed next. 

 

   

Hindu wedding tradition has the bride and groom place garlands of flowers over each other as a symbol of their acceptance of each other as husband and wife. And apparently the man has to be on the right. I made the mistake of sitting in the wrong chair, and they very quickly told me to move.

An interesting side note: there is no sentimentality for these garlands once they've been used. Deepal immediately took his off two seconds afterwards and they were pretty much forgotten and thrown away.

Well, that's one wedding down.. just two more to go..