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XperienceDays.com offers a wide variety of unique experience gifts to honor a special couple or to share with your spouse-to-be a unique and wonderful wedding present. Dinner cruises, a hot air balloon ride, private dance lessons (for the wedding couple or the entire wedding party), and even a personalized wedding song are only a few of the possibilities available for a wedding gift that will be truly unforgettable and very special.

What could be a more important and beautiful occasion to celebrate than a wedding? When two people who love each other choose to spend the rest of their lives together, it is certainly reason to celebrate. According to About.com, in the US alone there are approximately 2.4 million weddings performed annually, and $72 billion is spent on them each year. However, these statistics don’t tell us much about the romance and meaning of these events. Looking at some facts about the history of weddings, as well as some of the varieties of wedding customs, we get a deeper glimpse into the importance of a wedding in our cultural heritage, diverse and complex as it is.

Weddings, in ancient, medieval and Renaissance times, were often arranged by parents, with the young couple brought together for economic or, in the case of aristocratic families, political reasons. However, there could still be a romantic component to these marriages, as the couple might have the chance to meet and “court,” or the prospective groom might see the woman he likes and ask his parents to arrange a marriage with her. In many parts of the world (such as India, for example) arranged marriages still occur, and they can lead to happy and fulfilling relationships. However, most modern weddings involve a period of “falling in love” and what is still sometimes called courtship.

Our religious, literary and folk heritage is rich in stories about weddings. Here are just a few of them:

• In the book of Genesis, Abraham arranged a wedding for his son Isaac with the beautiful Rebekah, daughter of his kinsman, Bethuel. Abraham sent a servant to win Rebekah’s and her family’s consent to the marriage. After a sign from God given to the servant, the family (including Rebekah herself) agreed to the proposal, and she was sent off to marry Isaac, who – we are told – loved her from the beginning and took comfort from her after the death of his mother (Gen. 24:1-66).
• In the New Testament, John’s Gospel tells of the first miracle of Jesus, at a wedding. The couple ran out of wine, and the mother of Jesus asked him to intervene. At her request, Jesus told the attendants to fill some large jars with water, which he then turned miraculously into wine that the chief steward said was “the best wine” (John 2:1-11).
• In ancient Rome, a girl had to be twelve to marry legally, and marriages were normally arranged by the families of the prospective bride and groom. The wedding dress would typically be white, as it is today, but a cord tied around the bride’s waist, to be untied by the groom, was an important addition. And, as we still do today, the bride would be carried over the threshold by the groom. (http://www.thehistoryof.net/history-of-weddings.html)
• Shakespeare ends many of his comedies with weddings. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, in fact, ends with three weddings, presided over by hovering fairies. Much Ado About Nothing revolves around a wedding that is hindered by someone telling lies about the bride. After the conflict is resolved and the couple wed, and during the difficulties, the bride’s cousin and groom’s best friend also fall in love. And, of course, many of Shakespeare’s tragedies also involve weddings, the most famous being Romeo and Juliet, where the young lovers must secretly marry due to the hatred of their families for each other. Peace is only restored through the deaths of the young people.
• Famous historical weddings include the marriage of Queen Victoria of Great Britain to Prince Albert, her first cousin. This happy marriage resulted in nine children. President Grover Cleveland in 1886 became the only American President to marry in the White House. His bride was twenty-one year old Frances Folsom.

Many of the traditions that have come down to us through the centuries continue, but there is a wide variety of customs, even just within America. Here are just a few examples:

• Many Jewish couples marry under a “chuppa” or canopy. It is also traditional for the groom to break a glass, while the congregation shouts “Mazel tov” or “congratulations”
• Greek Orthodox brides and grooms have crowns held over their heads, signifying the dignity of the roles they are taking on.
• Roman Catholic brides often place a bouquet of flowers before a statue of Mary, the mother of Jesus, to show respect for her (and, whether realizing it or not, recalling Mary’s role in the Biblical story of the wedding feast at Cana).
• Indian brides traditionally decorate their bodies, particularly hands and feet, with henna in an ancient form of body art called “Mehendi.” The dye lasts only about four weeks and is completely natural (www.weddings.iloveindia.com).
• The film Twenty-Seven Dresses, starring Katherine Heigl, shows an extreme example of a young woman being asked to serve as a bridesmaid again and again. While few women get to be a bridesmaid as often as the character in the movie, it is normally considered an honor to be asked to be a bridesmaid or groomsman (or usher) in the wedding of a family member or close friend.

Overall, the history and traditions of weddings are rich and beautiful. One way to add to the experience for a special couple you wish to honor is by purchasing a gift from their bridal registry. Alternatively, a unique and meaningful gift can be purchased for your spouse-to-be as a wedding present. Through its wide choice of traditional and alternative gifts, eRegistry.com offers just that beautiful wedding gift experience that will never be forgotten.