Chapter 17, Yemenite Wedding
The big day for Tova Okev has come. She was getting married. I remember, just a week before, they had the “Henna” party for her, something like an engagement party, so the parents can agree that the couple may marry and so they can wish their children good luck on their wedding day. Sometimes I think, a Yemenite Henna party is a bigger party than a wedding party. For Orthodox Jews, (and this Yemenite neighborhood was mostly orthodox) a co-ed party is not permitted. The men must be separated from the women. As for us children, it wasn't important. We were allowed to be anywhere we wanted. First, I spent some time with the men. They had some musicians playing Yemenite and Arabic music, all the men joined them and were singing together while drinking their favorite Araq – an alcoholic drink made of barley. At the women's side of the party, on a big chair sat Tova the bride. I couldn't recognize her. Her face was covered with thick makeup. She was wearing a long red silk dress ...