Couples kiss in Mexico City, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2009. Thousands gathered in Mexico City's central plaza¹ to pucker² up for peace and break the world record for the largest number of people kissing at one time.

Mexico City puckered³ up to set a new record Saturday as nearly 40,000 people locked lips in the city center for the world's largest group kiss.

Carlos Martinez of Guinness World Records verified the record of 39,897 people who entered the gated kissing area of the city's Zocalo main square on Valentine's Day, besting Weston-super-Mare, an English town that set the previous kissing record in 2007.

"We did it! Long live Mexico," said Mexican singer-actress Susana Zavaleta, who serenaded the crowd before the kiss with the classic Mexican ballad⁴, "Besame Mucho," or "Kiss Me a Lot" — also the name of the event.

"More than 35,000 will simultaneously⁵ kiss to show that warmth and love are at the core of this capital, the heart of the Mexican Republic," the city's tourism department, which organized the gathering⁶, said in a statement.

The event "is aimed at changing people's attitudes toward human relations, especially between couples, so that respect, equity⁷ and tolerance⁸ are at the center of any relationship," the statement said.

The giant Zocalo, which can hold 100,000 people, was half-filled as mostly young couples embraced and held one another in a lip lock for 10 seconds.

The kiss was delayed for several hours as organizers waited for people to gather.

As the crowd grew, city workers in cupid wings offered hugs, teenage boys carried signs volunteering their kissing services and couples practiced openly in a country that surprises many with its pervasive⁹ public displays of affection.

"We love demonstrating our love in front of everyone and in front of our family," said Lucia Gutierrez, 38, who spent the afternoon rehearsing with Vicente Romero, 34, her boyfriend of 10 months. "There's nothing bad about showing your love."

上周六（情人节当天），近4万人齐聚墨西哥城市中心同时接吻，创下规模最大的集体接吻世界纪录。

经“吉尼斯世界纪录”官员卡洛斯•马丁内斯确认，当天在墨西哥城佐卡罗大广场的封闭接吻区内共有39897人，打破了英国小镇韦斯顿于2007年创下的集体接吻人数世界纪录。

墨西哥歌手兼演员苏珊娜•萨瓦莱塔说：“我们成功了！墨西哥万岁！”她在活动开始前为人们演唱了一首经典的墨西哥民谣《深情相吻》（Kiss Me a Lot），这也是本次活动的名称。

此次活动的组织者、墨西哥城旅游局在一份声明中称：“超过三万五千人将在市中心同时接吻，以此来表明爱与温暖是墨西哥首都的核心，也是墨西哥共和国的核心。

声明称，该活动“旨在改变人们对人际关系的态度，尤其是伴侣之间的关系，从而使尊重、平等和宽容成为任何关系的核心。”

当天，可容纳10万人的佐卡罗大广场被占了一半，以年轻情侣为主的接吻队伍集体拥吻了十秒钟。

主办方为等待人群聚齐，活动比预定时间推迟了几个小时。

在此期间，戴着爱神丘比特翅膀的工作人员为人们献上拥抱，一些十几岁的男孩打着无偿提供“献吻”服务的标牌，而情侣们则当众练习接吻，公开示爱的温情场面令人惊叹。

38岁的露西娅•古铁雷斯说：“我们喜欢在所有人和家人面前表达爱意，这没什么不好。” 露西娅整个下午都在与已交往10个月的34岁男友文森特•罗米洛练习接吻。