Couples keen to tie the knot on auspicious date

时间：2007-11-27 07:42:25

（单词翻译:单击）

Nov. 27 - August 8, 2008 is more than just a date.

 

For one, it marks the day of the opening ceremony for the highly anticipated Beijing Olympics.

 

It is also considered a lucky day for marriage. For Chinese couples looking to tie the knot, the combination of eights adds up to a potentially successful union.

 

"The Olympic year is meaningful to all of us," He Lina, secretary-general of the Shanghai Wedding Celebration Association, said.

 

"According to our Chinese tradition, eight is an auspicious1 number, good for weddings."

 

That specific date aside, 2008 itself is considered by Chinese a good year to get hitched2.

 

In Shanghai alone, nearly 120,000 young couples have so for decided3 to marry next year, some 30 percent more than this year, He said.

 

Shanghai's big hotels are also braced4 for an expected lift in business.

 

"Considered the 'metal year' in the Chinese lunar calendar, next year is good for weddings. A lot of couples want to hold ceremonies in our hotel," Angel Mao, a representative for Shangri-la, Shanghai, said.

 

Huang Meizi, a manager of the Guangzhou-based Dongfang Hotel in southern China, said the hotel had so far received three wedding banquet bookings for August 8.

 

Liu Shiyan, from the Liwan district marriage registration5 center in Guangzhou said two other dates were also popular among couples.

 

"Besides August 8, other days such as November 11 and January 11 are regarded good ones for marriage.

 

"We have received many bookings since the online booking service opened last month," Liu said.

 

But not everyone believes in number superstition6, or the claim the Olympics has something to do with the expected marriage surge.

 

"A marriage surge stimulated7 by the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games sounds groundless," Shi Kangning, secretary-general of the Committee of Matchmaking Service Industries under the China Association of Social Workers, told China Daily.

 

"The wedding surge of 2008 is a chain reaction of the birth surge in the 1980s, because next year, about 280 million youngsters in China will have reached the age of getting married."

 

Shi said the wedding ceremony market would "not be too hot" from June to October as it would be hard for many couples to secure bookings in hotels with a rating of three stars and over.

 

The hotels will be full because of the Olympic Games, Shi said.

 

"Matchmaking companies are not allowed to organize collective weddings in the name of Olympic Games," Shi said.

 

The manager of the Beijing Matchmaking website Zhang Keqin told China Daily the cost of wedding ceremonies will increase next year, but declined to release his 2008 cost list.

 

Zhang said prices will be negotiated with clients.

 
分享到：


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 auspicious vu8zs     
adj.吉利的；幸运的，吉兆的
参考例句：
  • The publication of my first book was an auspicious beginning of my career.我的第一本书的出版是我事业吉祥的开始。
  • With favorable weather conditions it was an auspicious moment to set sail.风和日丽，正是扬帆出海的黄道吉日。
2 hitched fc65ed4d8ef2e272cfe190bf8919d2d2     
（免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的过去式和过去分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上
参考例句：
  • They hitched a ride in a truck. 他们搭乘了一辆路过的货车。
  • We hitched a ride in a truck yesterday. 我们昨天顺便搭乘了一辆卡车。
3 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的
参考例句：
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
4 braced 4e05e688cf12c64dbb7ab31b49f741c5     
adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来
参考例句：
  • They braced up the old house with balks of timber. 他们用梁木加固旧房子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The house has a wooden frame which is braced with brick. 这幢房子是木结构的砖瓦房。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 registration ASKzO     
n.登记，注册，挂号
参考例句：
  • Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
  • What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？
6 superstition VHbzg     
n.迷信，迷信行为
参考例句：
  • It's a common superstition that black cats are unlucky.认为黑猫不吉祥是一种很普遍的迷信。
  • Superstition results from ignorance.迷信产生于无知。
7 stimulated Rhrz78     
a.刺激的
参考例句：
  • The exhibition has stimulated interest in her work. 展览增进了人们对她作品的兴趣。
  • The award has stimulated her into working still harder. 奖金促使她更加努力地工作。

©2005-2010英文阅读网