Elephant Wedding in Sri Lanka

In an international event with a difference, one happy couple is heading to the island formerly known as Ceylon to tie the knot amongst Indian elephants.

Two of my friends have recently announced their engagement, and congratulations to them. It didn’t come as much of a surprise, but what has given everyone a mild shock is the proposed venue for the wedding.

The pair have eschewed a white wedding in a London church (unsurprising given the avowed atheism of both parties) or registry office. They have even forgone the by-now traditional beach wedding in some exotic foreign locale. No golden sands in St Lucia, Jamaica or The Maldives for this happy couple.

Nope, the destination has been picked seemingly at random, the bride having always fancied the sound of Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon), despite really not knowing too much about it.

The groom seems fairly happy to go along with this, and is already trying to wangle the dates to coincide around a cricket tour.

But since the island Sri Lanka was picked as the wedding destination, another factor has come into play. It appears as though the happy couple want elephants to be involved in the wedding, whether as guests of honour or being ridden on. This, to me, sounds like a recipe for disaster – have they never seen the classic episode of Blue Peter where the elephant unleashes hell all over the floor?

Still, if it’s elephants they want, it’s elephants they’ll get. This is going to be one international event with a difference. And, besides, for me it’s an excuse to visit a country that I’ve not been to before and it’s always nice to tick another one off the list.