Bride recreates old Hanoi for themed engagement ceremony

At precisely 9 a.m., the groom Trung Kien’s family arrived from northern Bac Giang Province with 11 trays bearing gifts. About a kilometer from 27-year-old Bao Ngoc’s home, they switched to using rickshaws.

In order for the two families to familiarize themselves with each other’s cultures, Bao Ngoc decided to recreate scenes of old Hanoi on the way to her home.

A mini set recreating Hanoi’s historic Hang Than Street, depicting a banh com store along with baskets of com found on the way to the bride’s home during Bao Ngoc and Trung Kien’s engagement ceremony on Sept. 30, 2023. Photo courtesy of Ngoc

After 10 minutes, when the groom’s family arrived at the bride’s doors, Vietnamese folk songs sung in the traditional Bac Giang-style quan ho folk style such as "Offering betel nuts" and "Welcome guests" were heard.

Outside, artisans made toy figurines called to he from glutinous rice powder, while stalls selling banh com (green sticky rice cake) invited customers to stop by, and the flower carts ubiquitous to Hanoi during the autumn holidays also attracted people’s attention.

"I want to bring the cultural spirit of Hanoi to my hometown Bac Giang and recreate the streets that have the memories of our love," Bao Ngoc said.

The engagement ceremony combined the cultures of Hanoi and the province of Bac Giang, delighting the bride and groom as they passed by scenes familiar to them.

Bao Ngoc shared that she graduated with a degree in Event Direction and as such the genesis of the idea came to her when it was time to design her own big day.

Aside from the mini sets depicting the old quarter of Hanoi, guests also saw a welcome tent decorated with Vietnamese flat palm hats, women singing quan ho songs while welcoming guests with arrangements of betel leaves and araca nuts shaped like phoenix wings, and a 3D rendition of the famous Dong Ho-style painting "The Rat’s Wedding."

Bao Ngoc (in red) and female guests posing in front of the 3D rendition of the Dong Ho painting "The Rat’s Wedding". Photo courtesy of Ngoc

Ngoc said that instead of simply printing the bride and groom’s names on a background, she wanted relatives from both sides of the families to socialize while looking at these unique decorations, and be introduced to the culture of the traditional, historic Vietnamese "Kinh Bac" region during the lavish celebration of a bride born in the year of the rat

When the ceremony ended, the male and female quan ho singers sang a farewell song to say goodbye to the groom’s family.

Bao Ngoc added that the ceremony was paid for entirely by her and the groom, with the majority of the money going into decoration, such as hiring an artisan from HO Chi Minh City to take care of the flowers, and a craftsman from Hang Than Street, Hanoi, to design the gift-bearing trays.

The bride shared that perhaps she and the groom will choose a Western theme for their upcoming wedding.

"Both my fiancée and I are working hard to save money so we can organize a proper, impressive wedding. It will show how dedicated we are to each other," Ngoc said.