Can you tell us a little more about the Tea Ceremony and how you incorporated it into your day?

The tea ceremony was a way for us to pay hommage to our elders, and thank them for their support and love. It also represents us entering new families. The tea is poured by the bride and groom to close family members in order of age. In return we were adorned with gold necklaces, bracelets, rings, and red envelopes with lucky money. The tea ceremony took place on the dance floor during the reception while guests were having dinner, and was narrated by our DJ/MC. That way, those who wanted to watch the entire process could; but you could also have dinner and chat, without feeling obligated to sit through an entire 20 minute ceremony. For the tea ceremony I changed into a beautiful red qipao or traditional chinese wedding dress that my mom had made for me in China. It was really nice to be able to represent both Asian and Western cultures with the two different dresses.

Any other ways in which you added your culture to your wedding? We'd love to hear!

There were a few other cultural traditions that we did in the months leading up to the wedding. Several weeks before our wedding day, Eric's family came to my family's home to have tea and brought "betrothal gifts" - Chinese delicacies like a whole roast pig, dried scallops, pastries, candies, liquor, and red envelopes. We also (instructed by Eric's mom) hung up signs behind our apartment doors with the double happiness Chinese character; and slept with a red comforter for 3 months after the wedding. We had no idea about these traditions beforehand, but they are supposed to bring good luck to our marriage!