Slowly, but surely, the work was completed. We got more glass and finished up the windows. The stove eventually was built and Curt applied the mud/sand mixture over the brick so we could whitewash it. The house was whitewashed, the door frames were painted, the ugly entrance area was repainted a mossy green (hey, we didn't have a lot of options), the furniture moved to where we wanted it. We could start cleaning and unpacking!...until we learned that there was to be a wedding at our house. A's sister was getting married and that meant that this house, where she grew up, was to be used for the wedding. It was custom and there was nowhere else to have it. So, after we unpacked everything, we re-packed everything and stored it in one room. Why? Because a wedding means absolute chaos. All relatives on the bride's side converge on the house about 4 days before. Multiple people move in because they come from other villages and obviously need a place to sleep. The four room house turned into a work station. The summer home, or tepee, that stands in the yard was overflowing with people and food. Families moved in and it was time to work. From morning until evening we slaughtered sheep, washed and cut potatoes, carrots, beets and onions, made salads and cakes and cooked soaps and meat over the open flame. No one brings anything, mind you, so we were continually asked for utensils and pots, pans and serving platters. Because things often get stolen during these days, we loaned out very few things which made work even longer as 15 women are waiting for one of the two knives. It was great language practice but tiring. Many people from the village wander in and out through the day (remember your home isn't a place of refuge but more of a place to get out of the weather) and the drunk men were a little overwhelming.
Finally, the big day arrives. Everything is cooked or warmed back up over the fire and guests start arriving. The bride and groom don't show up until 4 but we had about 50 people waiting around and getting drunk. Finally the bride and groom arrive from his village with his whole family and the festivities begin. We probably had about 150 people total. Although it's a lot of fun to watch the customs, you get tired quickly of the drunk men continually approaching you to talk because their inhibitions are down and everyone else just staring at you because they still have their inhibitions! Now on day 4 or 5 of continual activity, you begin to tire and people are still drinking in your yard at midnight. We told anyone left in the house to go outside and went to bed with the other 2 families that were staying in our home.
The next day...there is stuff everywhere. Empty vodka bottles, plastic plates, cups and silverware, cauldrons, pots, pans and food all left out overnight, the fat now hardened to everything. Remember, we have no running water and water needs to be first pumped and then heated over fire to start cleaning. We looked at all those women who came to cook to start the cleanup process. And one-by-one, over the morning, they all left to return home. Suddenly, the only people left were Curt, A and me. We couldn't believe it! It took us 2 full days to clean up the yard of cigarette butts and vodka bottles and sheep parts, get all that stuff washed, the make shift tables taken apart, things returned to everyone we had borrowed them from, and the house cleaned of all the food, fat and mud that had been brought inside. The three of us collapsed exhausted by the end but impressed with a now clean house, yard and summer home. Perhaps we could finally settle into our home...
