Cross Cultural Awareness and English 2013 Semester 1 Week 4

Hello everyone,

Today we are going to review last week's class and then talk about Jewish wedding traditions. 

First, let's review some vocabulary. Please click the link: Cross Cultural Awareness and English Vocabulary.

One of the Greek wedding traditions we learned about last class was the tradition of throwing rice at the end of the ceremony. Sophia Mavridi, a teacher in Athens, told me that this tradition has been officially banned in many places because some people over did it and disturbed the ceremony. Throwing rice or confetti is a tradition at some weddings in Canada too, but many churches have banned throwing rice and confetti because confetti is difficult to clean up, and people can slip and fall on rice.

Let's listen to a mantinada. The song is called
Ο ΥΜΝΟΣ ΤΗΣ ΜΑΝΑΣ - ΓΙΩΡΓΟΣ ΖΕΡΒΑΚΗΣ . 
Please click the link.

Vicky Loras tells us that the title means, "Hymn to Mother". The singer says that there are many kinds of love in the world but the one kind of love that stands out is love for one's mother. Why do you think that a man might sing a song about his love for his mother at his wedding?

Here is a mantinada shared by Christina Markoulaki,  a teacher in Heraklion, which is the capital of Crete:

Σιγά-σιγά μη βιάζεστε κι η πόρτα μας θ’ ανοίξει, γιατί έχει η νύφη αδέλφια και γονείς να τσ’ αποχαιρετίσει. 

Christina says, "...this mantinada warns the guests not to hurry because the bride will take her time to say goodbye to her family." This matinada shows the very strong connection between the couple and the family, which Christina says is,"... an entirely Greek phenomenon!"

Let's listen to this mantinada now.

 Ok, now let's turn to p.135 in our text book. Let's read about Jewish wedding traditions.
See you next week.