PRE-WEDDING PARTIES

FAREWELL TO THE INDIAN BACHELOR
The "Farewell Feast of the Five Bachelors" sounds suspiciously like a bachelor party: An Indian groom-to-be eats dinner with his unmarried male friends to mark his last days of bachelorhood. But, unlike Western bachelor parties, rituals are included that show the groom's commitment to his imminent marriage. After the meal, the men dig a hole and the groom sits over it. They pour water over him and collect it in a pitcher as it runs through his hair. Later, he will bring the pitcher to his lucky bride's house as a sign of his commitment. Think about it -- your wife-to-be might appreciate a pitcher of dirty water more than the sight of you empty-handed and drunk after a night of debauchery and lap-dancing.

HENNA YOUR HONEY IN SUDAN
Pre-wedding ritual purification using henna (a plant dye) is a Sudanese tradition. After dinner at his father's house, the groom, his relatives, and male friends walk to the bride's house, singing, playing drums, carrying lights, waving sticks, and dancing. Inside the house, the groom meets his bride, who is sitting on the bed dressed in her wedding attire with a scarf hiding most of her face and body. The groom's female relatives have brought perfume, incense, and henna, which they hand to the groom. The groom places the henna in his bride's palm as a symbol of their bond.

SERBIAN BRANDY INVITES
A few days before a Serbian wedding, the groom's father becomes a buklijas, or flask-bearer. He fills a flask with brandy, decorates it with flowers, and goes from house to house, inviting guests to the wedding by offering a drink of brandy and toasting to the couple's health. The guests replenish the father's supply of brandy and give him a token of thanks, such as a pair of socks, a shirt, or a handkerchief. (Before you send your dad on an errand like this, make sure he brings a designated driver.)

INDIAN FACIAL
Jealous of your bride-to-be's pre-wedding beauty regimen? In Indian tradition, the groom gets a makeover, too. After a hair trim, the groom's family and close male friends rub turmeric paste on his face and chest. Turmeric, a member of the ginger family, is used in East India as a dye, an aromatic stimulant, and a flavoring for food. It leaves the skin with a golden glow and is supposed to bring good luck and ward off bad spirits.

GIFTS AND MONEY

JAPANESE YUINO CEREMONY
This Japanese betrothal ceremony marks the transfer of gifts from the groom's household to the bride's. The families dress formally in black (women in kimonos and men in suits and ties) and the bride's and groom's fathers exchange gifts and vows. The groom's father kneels, saying: "This is the yuino from the family; please accept it eternally." He presents ten gifts in all, including money and materials for the bride's wedding kimono. The bride's father accepts the gifts, and the families eat a meal and drink some sake together. (In modern-day Japan, the formal ceremony is much shorter and involves a simpler gift exchange between the bride and groom.)

JEWISH PROXY
In Orthodox Jewish tradition, a male representative for the bride -- usually her father -- acts as her proxy in a meeting with the groom before the wedding. The groom and the bride's proxy clasp their right hands as a sign of the bond, and the rabbi places his hand over theirs and says blessings. The groom hands the rabbi a tied handkerchief containing six coins, which the rabbi then gives to the bride's father as a symbolic dowry.

CHINESE DINNERS
In China, families celebrate at several feasts leading up to the wedding. During one traditional dinner, the bride and groom exchange vows and drink rice wine (he downs four cups, she demurely drinks two). The groom then sticks two hairpins into the bride's topknot, and the families exchange gifts and dine together.

INTERNATIONAL CEREMONY TRADITIONS

INDIAN PETAL TOSS
If your brother's getting married and words could never express the happiness you feel for him, do as the Indians do: Bag the best man's toast and throw flower petals at Mr. Groom instead. In Indian tradition, the groom's brother sprinkles flower petals over the couple's heads after they exchange wedding vows. Today, all the guests at an Indian wedding throw petals at the couple.

DANISH KISSES
In Denmark, the groom accompanies his new bride for the first part of the reception. Then, at some point during the evening, he leaves -- and all the men in the room take the chance to kiss the bride. But the groom isn't left out in the cold -- when the bride leaves the party later in the evening, all the women make a beeline for the groom's lips.

JEWISH STOMP
In Jewish wedding ceremonies, after the bride and groom drink a glass of wine, the groom wraps the glass in a napkin and smashes it with his foot. The shattering of the glass has many meanings. It symbolizes the fall of the Temple of Jerusalem, a reminder that great joy can be suddenly shattered. The broken glass also represents marriage's permanence: Once it is done it cannot be undone (just as the glass cannot be put back together). Nowadays, bride and groom might hold hands and break the glass together.

DANISH SOCKS AND ITALIAN TIES
During the dancing at a Danish wedding, the groom's family circles him, getting closer and closer until they pull out a pair of scissors and cut his tie and socks. In Italy, the groom's tie was traditionally cut into pieces that he could sell to guests at the reception to earn money for the honeymoon. But before you run toward the groom with scissors in hand, make sure he's not sentimental about that tie.

OLD TURKISH SHOES
A Turkish Osmanli bride returns to her parents' home the night after the wedding (without her man): The newly married couple must wait an excruciating 24 hours before they can hit the sheets. Friends and family are there to watch when the frustrated lovers finally see each other the next day: To get to the room where his bride is waiting, the groom walks a gauntlet of friends who hurl old shoes at him! After he enters the room, he kneels and prays. Then the couple shares a cube of sugar, eats dinner, and spends their first night together -- at last.

From About.com