This article originally appeared on our sister website, Urban Family Shanghai.
By Yuzhou Hu
Even the annoying drizzling couldn't dampen the enthusiasm of all the lovebirds around town, as 2,273 couples tied the knot on Valentine's Day, reports Shine. Based on the statistics of the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau, that figure is some six times the daily average. Not only that, but it was an increase of nearly 50 percent compared to last year's 1,504 couples.
"Valentine's Day has always been a popular date for lovers to register," said Fu Junping, an official from Xuhui Registration Center, which prepared assorted heart-shaped balloons as well to mark the special date. "There were already 30 couples queuing outside before we opened the door. There were so many of them that we had to extend our operation hours."
Image via @上海反邪教/Weibo
Despite the sudden spike in the number, the efficiency remained unaffected thanks to the newly-installed self-service machines. Unlike old times when couples had to fill in the form by hand, nowadays all they have to do is scan their ID cards, which can greatly abridge the time needed for the process.
Couples tend to enter into the next stage of their lives on memorable or auspicious dates. Apart from Valentine’s Day, Qixi Festival and Spring Festival are also popular candidates.
Warm fuzzy feelings aside, there were 136 couples in Shanghai who chose to end their marriages on the special day.
[Cover image via Pexels]
This article was originally published by our sister magazine Urban Family Shanghai. For more articles like this, visit the Urban Family website, or follow the Urban Family WeChat account (ID: urbanfamilyshanghai).
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