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The Vlach Wedding

The Vlach wedding is a custom with roots in the ancient Greek Dionysian traditions.

The marriage of Sarakatsani started a week before the ceremony. On the Sunday before the wedding, youngsters call their relatives from house to house and offer them ouzo. On Wednesday, in the houses of the bride and groom they were making yeast for the wedding buns, on Thursday they kneaded and baked it. This process was accompanied with songs and dancing. On Friday, at the home of the groom they were preparing the Banners, a kind of pennant for the marriage. On Saturday, the guests visited the house of the bride and groom and brought gifts to the newlyweds and the feast held until dawn.

On Sunday, after shaving the groom, he put on his good suit and they headed singing for the bride's house, riding their horses.

There, full tables were waiting with both sides of the families, who offered the wedding buns to each other. After the treats and feast the bride started the farewell dance and then she got on a white horse and headed for the church.

The coronation ceremony took place in the village of the groom. After the coronation, they all went together to the groom's house, where the final feast would take place. In the dances, the first dancer always held the Banners and the feast continued until the early morning.

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