Valentine’s Day in China
Romance was all over the city yesterday. Interesting to see how Valentine’s Day, which in essence is an US marketing concept driven by retailers who needed another excuse to sell their ware, has taken hold here in Shanghai.
Half of W.’s colleagues got flowers and/or chocolates from their boyfriends/husbands. People even sent each other sms to wish the other person a happy Valentine’s day.
Booking a table was not easy either, as most restaurants were fully booked. I managed to get a table at a very nice Spanish Tapas Bar, but only at 20:30.
Although very much a western restaurant it was packed with young Chinese couples. I saw a guy kneeling next to his girlfriend whispering in her ear. Another took out a golden necklace of it’s case. They fed each other, sipped from each others glasses and held hands.
Not everybody would leave happy as I overheard a girl saying “I don’t want to hurt you”.
An an antidote, yesterday was also the foundation of the Shanghai Divorce Club.
“There’s nothing frightening about a divorce - it’s merely a slight mistake in life,” said club founder Shu Xin. “So don’t get desperate, as there’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
Then again
A record number of couples registered to marry yesterday, celebrating their love on Valentine’s Day.
Across the city, 1,720 couples registered to tie the knot, according to the marriage management division of the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau. The bureau said only about 200 couples registered on an average day.
Sources: Shanghai Daily
Picture: BBC
Posted
Wednesday, February 15th, 2006 at 2:12 am,
View related entries in Shanghai Life.
Leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
February 19th, 2007 03:36
The girls are waiting today for flowers, belgian made chocolates and a romantic dinner in a restaurant that has overprized its food for this special day. Valentine’s day has gotten some traction here in Shanghai as I noticed last year and I’m sure this year it will be even more popular. …