June 11th, Kiran weds Sarah!

The day of the wedding had finally arrived.  It was an all day event that did not disappoint!  It started at 10am with a ceremony held at the same church Kiran's parents were married in 30+ years ago.   

Ready for our first Indian wedding.  Cara looked awesome in her sari!  Kiran's parents bought the awesome Indian shirts for the groomsmen.

The Groomsmen: Selah, Matteo, me, and Scotty and Suresh the Best Man.

Kiran and Sarah being blessed by the pride of priests.

The wedding party

It was a tradtional Marthoma service which included a choir, organ player, and a handful of priests and assistant priests (not sure their title) blessing rings and heads and impressively chanting prayers in English and Mayalayam.  I was honored to be a one of Kiran's groomsmen, so I got to witness the service up close!

After the service we were driven to a hotel for lunch.  We were greeted at the hotel with a high energy drumline.  One dancer/cymbal player was particularly into it and demonstrated some great moves I would try later in the night.  During lunch we were entertained by a sitar player and supporting cast.  And as we enjoyed another awesome meal, Kiran and Sarah sat for an impressive amount of photos with the guests.

Indian Drumline!

The sitar player and drum player were particularly good.  Can't remember what the percussion instrument is called, but it's not a tabla because this one is played from both ends.

One of our glamour shots with the bride and groom.

Texas Ultimate!...and Kim, honorary member =)

After lunch we were driven back to the Keys Hotel to nap and recharge for the dance party.  When we arrived back at the party hotel at 6:30pm, the DJ wasted no time warming us up and immediately started pumping high energy dance music.  A low ceilinged carpeted room was turned into the best dance party in Trivandrum with fog, lasers, disco lights, and our awesome DJ.  Lots of dancing, drinks, dinner on our laps, and more dancing until 10:30pm when the party was over.  It was a sweat fest and an awesome time.  I can't wait to throw an Indian dance party when I get back to Austin.  Start early, go hard, and feel good the next day.

The event we all traveled thousands of miles for did not disappoint.  Big thanks to Kiran and Sarah for including us in their celebration.  It was great meeting Kiran's extended family, aunts and uncles that now live in the U.S. and family friends that still live in Kerala, and meeting and partying with Sarah's family as well.