A Thai Wedding

Serendipitously my friend Lance came to Thailand to get "remarried" to his wife in a traditional Thai ceremony this weekend. I got to attend, pretty intimately, every part of the ceremony, representing the entirety of the groom's guest list.
The wedding was wonderful. I was so lucky to have gotten this opportunity. Not only did I go to all of the events, but I got to hang out with Lance (a much needed friendly face) and travel with him and his wife to each part of the ceremony.
The first part of the day began at Lee's mother's house. They went to a studio to put on traditional Thai wedding attire and picked me up around 5:30 am. Shortly after we arrived at the house 9 monks strolled in, each carrying various adornments and tools to bless the wedding. Apparently, that's all they do. Unlike in the west, the monks don't actually marry the couple, they simply bless the union.
This part of the ceremony consisted mostly of chanting and feeding the monks in thanks. I was originally going to take pictures using Lance's camera, but Lee decided that one of her friends should do it, which turned out to be a very good idea.
I learned today that Thai religious ceremonies have alot of ritual but not alot of reverence. During the chanting, Mel (Lee's photographing friend) would walk around taking pictures, at times even getting between the couple and the monks! I would never have even considered doing something like that, so it's probably good that she was taking the pictures.
Also throughout the ceremony people would poke their heads in the window, walk through the room, talk, or even yell in the nearby kitchen... I was expecting holy, silent reverence, and it was anything but.
Immediately after the monks blessed the union it was time for the "money parade." Lance and "his family" (which consisted of me and a couple dozen Thai volunteers) paraded down the street with gifts and cash for Lee's family. As we approached the house, we found Lance blockaded by several rows of family members.
Each row had to be persuaded to let Lance into the house so that he may marry lee. Lee's grandmother acted as Lance's negotiator, and although I couldn't understand what she was saying, I got the impression that many of her statements were "off color" at best...
Once inside, the gifts were laid out along with the dowry and there was much whooping and cheering over the offering. Finally, Lee's mother wrapped the dowry up into a bag and ran up the stairs as everyone cheered, which I supposed symbolized the acceptance and therefore the marriage.
That evening there was a banquet at the Police club which was rather fancy. This was much more western seeming. There was a wedding cake, the lighting of candles, speeches, etc. etc.

Unfortunately, all of the pictures are on Lance's camera... as soon as he gets back I will hound him about emailing them to me so I can post some!