A collective wedding was held for 100 couples with financial difficulties in Ho Chi Minh City on Monday, when Vietnam celebrated its 74th National Day (September 2).

The event has been organized on this special occasion every year by the Center for Assisting Youths and Workers, under the municipal Youth Union, for more than a decade.

Some of the couples got their marriage registration done years ago and already have children, but it was not until yesterday that they could finally have a wedding ceremony.

Several said that they had been waiting for nearly 20 years to have a wedding of their own.

Monday’s mass wedding started with the 200 grooms and brides cycling through multiple streets in the city’s downtown area on electric bicycles decorated with flowers.

The bicycle parade ended at a wedding hall where 100 tables were made ready for their wedding reception.

Each of the newly-weds was joined by their families, friends, colleagues, and children.

One of the brides, Trinh Thi Bich Nhan, said she was a bit tired having had to get up at 2:00 am for make-up, but she was excited to be part of the collective wedding.

Nhan, a 34-year-old disabled swimmer, has been married to a security guard for years but the couple was never able to financially afford a wedding reception.

The Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union has held 12 mass wedding events since 2008, helping 922 men and women tie the knot.

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