When two people from different cultures fall in love, the wedding planning gets… interesting. In our case, one of us is Kazakh. The other is Norwegian. We have decided to embrace both our cultures.
In Kazakh culture it is normal to have one ceremony from the bride’s side and one from the groom’s side. We will also have two ceremonies, but with different styles:
- One Kazakh pre-wedding celebration (Qyz Uzatu) in Astana, Kazakhstan
- One Norwegian-style wedding in Oslo, Norway
We know this might be a bit unusual, but to us, it feels right. It’s our way of honoring both families and both cultures.
Why Two Ceremonies?
Kazakhstan and Norway are pretty far apart — not just geographically, but also culturally. Weddings mean different things, follow different customs, and have different vibes. Instead of squeezing it all into one day, we’ve decided to give each culture its own spotlight.
- The Qyz Uzatu is about saying farewell and give blessings to the bride, with lots of music and entertaintment.
- The Norwegian wedding will be more familiar to our friends and family in the Nordics — a bit more relaxed, with speeches, dancing, and cake.
We’re not duplicating everything — we’re just having two celebrations, in two different flavors.
Do You Have to Attend Both?
Absolutely not. We’d love to see you at either (or both) celebrations, but we completely understand that travel, time, and budgets vary. What matters most to us is that you feel part of this journey, whether in person or from a distance.
We have made travel guides to Norway and Kazakhstan to help you plan. You can check them out here:
Additionally, you can take a look at our preliminary travel itineraries for both Kazakhstan and Norway to help you plan your stay:
Below you’ll find practical information and the programs for the wedding days in Astana and Oslo:
Two Cultures, One Story
At the heart of all this is one very simple thing: we’re getting married.
We are most excited about that.
RSVP
We have a seperate form for each ceremony. You find them here:
For the ceremony in Astana we request your response by March 1st. For Oslo it’s June 15th.