1. Traditional Chinese weddings involved strict rituals and were often arranged by parents, with the main steps being the proposal, birthday matching, presenting of betrothal and wedding gifts, and selecting the wedding date. 2. Modern weddings now allow more individual choice but still incorporate some traditional elements like decorating the houses with celebratory words and exchanging dowry gifts between families. 3. Dowry gifts typically included gold jewelry to represent the groom's status as well as food like pork, chicken, fruits and noodles to welcome the bride back to her family home after the wedding.