Another First for me.....

On Saturday just gone one of our Uncles from Geyro got married and he asked me to be the Chairlady...

Well I didnt have a clue what that meant !!! and everytime I asked one of my Nigerian friends they just kept laughing at the thought....so it didn't bode well...

Uncle Musa just told me i was expected to say some encouraging words !!! and give a substantial gift !!! sounds easy enough....

So we get ready...all the ladies from Geyro had outfits made in the chosen cloth ( everyone in an organisation likes to be identified here by wearing the same cloth !!) and off we went.

Well we were late arriving and when we get there we were some of the first to come....and certainly no family or a bride...

Then I get asked to substitute for the Chairman ( who had been called away to a funeral) and he was supposed to pick up the bride...so we drive to the pastors house to see not only the bride still getting ready but 10 bridesmaids as well...well no way were they all going to fit so we had to call for a back up !!! meanwhile suddenly my car is being covered in ribbons....despite not being very clean courtesy of the village the day before...

I had never met the bride before....and eventually we arrived at the church one and a half hours later than supposed to start...and then ....

A two hour service in which our boys sang and the Uncle joined in and The bride joined in the choir....and it was all in Hausa....I was in and out of the service being called out to rescue one thing or another....and finally they were married...

We managed to eat small and then proceeded to the reception ground next door....and embarassment as i had to sit at the high table and had to get up and dance in front of a crowd... thankfully by this point Gaylyn and Jamie had joined me and so we danced together whilst people kept coming up and showering us with money !!!

It was tiring but thankfully the chairman turned up so i didnt have to speak ...yeah...

Finally we got home around six in the evening...a truly long day full of cultural learning experiences....hopefully not to be repeated in a while.

Me and my assistant.....