With the warm weather along comes another season, wedding season. The Rathaus (Town Hall) has been steadily getting busier the last few weeks; on Fridays and Saturdays the city steps are filled with heart shaped balloons, Sekt and brides. All German weddings having to take place at a Standesamt (registry office, usually located within the Rathaus), a church wedding being an optional and non-legally binding extra. German weddings are generally fairly low-key affairs, like the ones Ruth wrote about; receptions too are a little different to those in the UK, but still a great celebration with their own idiosyncrasies as Jane experienced.
Especially in Southern Germany it is common for the legal wedding to be a family only affair, with few, if any, friends invited. The chance for a decent party however cannot be ignored. Let me introduce you to the Polterabend. Taking place in the weeks before the wedding, this is not to be confused with the single sex Junggesellinnenabschied (stag/bachelor & hen/bachelorette parties) which have become ever more popular. This is an event that everyone is invited to.
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