Weddings Under Lockdown...

The wedding, is a very big event in the life of any couple. Especially after the roora/ lobola/ bride price has been paid, then real fun begins. It takes months to plan the perfect day and it comes with stress, meltdowns and disagreements but also with joy and excitement. But it's all worth it in the end with a beautiful bride and a dashing groom riding off into the sunset. However, with the global outbreak of the COVID-19, national lockdowns have brought with them restrictions on event gatherings and wedding gatherings have not been spared. In Zimbabwe, a national lockdown was announced initially for 21 days, and then indefinitely. Most couples who had their weddings planned this year all of a sudden had their plans turned upside down. Some have cancelled, some postponed and some have decided to go ahead.

We spoke to a few couples that went ahead with their weddings and who were willing to share their experiences and this is what we got. 

Challenges

While wedding planning is already stressful in itself, the pandemic brought more challenges. The challenges were wide ranging including trying to get refunds from service providers who could no longer offer services, uncertainty on official gathering regulations and guidelines, uncertainty on when things ordered from outside the country would arrive with most boarders being closed and challenges with rightsizing the guest list. Attempting to cut down the number of invited guests was especially a nightmare for most couples; which sekuru or mainini or mother's friend from church do you leave out on this special occasion? Can you imagine the stress? With the government having reduced gatherings to only 50 people and the call to social distance, surely this seems quite impossible given how our people do not RSVP and always come with additional guests of their own.

Some Tips

The obvious most important thing for lockdown weddings is ensuring the safety of all your invited guests. It is essential that you take the necessary precautions. This is something that cannot be over looked. Make sure that you are in control with how your guests are travelling. Try to avoid people who do not live together to be in the same mode of transport. Social distancing is important to maintain even though it is difficult, there must always be a no mask no entry policy. Family units must be seated together, so the traditional fill up a table may not necessary work, smaller spaced out tables will work better. Sitting arrangements during ceremonies must also observe the recommended 1-2-meter social distancing. Hand-washing is mandatory, and there should be several designated spots throughout the venue with foot operated hand-washing stations or automated hand sanitizers. Some have also gone as far as fumigating the venue before the guests arrive. If you can also check temperatures that would be an added bonus. For those who are in the 'at risk groups' it would be better to try and set up a live stream on Zoom or YouTube even Facebook so that they can watch from home and are not exposed.

For the couples that are still on the fence about this, I can assure you that it is possible to still pull off your perfect day. You can opt to DIY and save costs, pull in family members who have different talents and skills and they help you with things such as catering, décor, DJ and also a home venue given it is small numbers. However, you can still seek the help of service providers who are still very much available and also adapting to this new phenomenon. Congratulations to all couples that pulled it off!! and happy planning to those who are still at it!!