Helloooooooooh… you fabulous, fabulous people! Your wedding diva is back and I’m here to talk to you about Scandinavian wedding customs, particularly from Denmark. I’ll be discussing what happens in a Danish wedding and we will leave wedding savings and inexpensive weddings for another day.
Now, in traditional Danish weddings, it is customary for them to place or build an arc of pine branches in front of the bride’s family home. This is called the “Gate of Honor”. It is customary for the couple to walk through the arc (gate of honor) on the way to the ceremony. When the couple reach and celebrate their silver wedding anniversary, another Gate of Honor would be built.
Wedding receptions in Denmark are quite different from what we are accustomed to. At some point during the celebration, the groom will leave the room and all the male guests will kiss the bride. When the groom returns it would be the bride’s turn to disappear or leave the room and all the female guests will kiss the groom. I really don’t know the point of the groom and bride leaving the room when one of them is being kissed. Maybe Danes are a jealous people? Who knows. But I think it’s quite a lovely, unique tradition if you ask me.
The customary wedding cake in Denmark is the Danish marzipan ring cake (shaped like cornucopia), also known as Kransekake. This particular cake is made with almonds, pastilage, and marzipan (fondant). The outer part of the cake is beautifully decorated by sugar works, while the inside of the cake is filled with fresh fruits, candies, and almond pastry. It is a must that the guests eat the piece of cake cut by the bride and the groom as a married couple to avoid bad luck.
Danish people have this lovely tradition that the bride’s bouquet would be placed on the grave of a deceased parent. That said, don’t be surprised if you also see wedding parties in the cemetery!
And finally, instead of ribbons, Danish people use a string of Danish flags on their wedding car. It seems that Danes have this obsession with their flag. Maybe it just shows how patriotic the Danish are.
I hope you enjoyed today’s topic and please, enjoy your weekend. Toodles!
