光棍节来临 “爱情超市”走俏（双语）

爱思英语编者按：光棍节(Singles Day)是单身族的节日，正像歌曲里唱的那样：“狂欢，是一群人的孤单。”而近些年，每逢11月11日许多渴望爱情的“脱光族”们并没有像往常一样穿梭于各种派对之间，而是选择去逛一种新型的“爱情超市”。

光棍节：依然快乐
 
Singles Day, known as Guang Gun Festival, was first observed by university students in the 1990s, who chose the date because of its four lonely figures, 11/11. The special day is now welcomed by many young people.
“单身节”也叫做“光棍节”，它的历史可以追溯到上个世纪90年代的高校中，由于这个日子由四个象征光棍的阿拉伯数字“1”组成，所以大学生们将其命名为“光棍节”。如今，这个特别的节日深受年轻人的欢迎。

“Happy Singles Day!” is the congratulatory message spread among single youths via short message services on cell phones on November 11th, a day on the calendar for unmarried people.
作为单身者的节日，在11月11日这天，年轻单身一族们都会互相发送“单身万岁”的短讯，向单身朋友们送去祝福。

Many youths in big cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou like to hold parties on the day or go to bars to enjoy themselves in twos and threes.
生活在京沪广等大都市中的年轻人每到这个时候都会举办单身派对或是邀三五好友去酒吧喝上几杯。

Zhi Chengguan, 38, a white-collar employee in Guangzhou, said he has waited for the Singles Day to come for a few days.
来自广州的38岁白领智成冠（音译）表示，他期待这个光棍节有一段时间了。

Zhi said he will see a film by himself in the evening, then visit a local bar, drink beer and chat with friends until midnight.
智成冠表示，光棍节晚上他会选择独自去看电影，然后和好友一起去当地的一家酒吧，喝喝啤酒、聊聊天，直到深夜。

It is no longer a taboo to be single in the country, especially in big metropolises like Guangzhou, Zhi said.
同时他也表示，单身主义已逐渐被社会所接受，尤其是像广州这样的大都市。

Zhi, who dated seriously twice in his 20s but was sadly dumped each time, has no plans to date again, let alone get married.
智成冠在20多岁时，曾有过两段恋爱史，但每次都很不幸的被对方“甩”。从此他不想再和别人约会，更别提结婚了。

This year, single Chinese people are being invited to shop for a partner at a so-called love supermarket as the country prepares for the Singles Day.
今年的光棍节，中国的单身青年们会受邀走进“爱情超市”中，寻觅自己的另一半。

Millions of singletons were being encouraged to pay about 100 yuan to submit photos of themselves - along with their vital statistics, age, salary, profession and hometown - to be viewed by people shopping for a partner.
数以百万的单身者在交付约100元的报名费后，即可提交个人照片，以及包括年龄、收入、职业和籍贯的重要个人资料，单身者可根据资料筛选自己的意中人。

Clients are even required to produce official documents to support their claims.
这些“爱情超市”的顾客还被要求提交官方的身份证明。

“This way, we are superior to online dating agencies, where people put up false information, " said Gao Shan, the love supermarket`s company secretary.
“爱情超市”主办公司的秘书高珊（音译）说：“由于网络存在大量虚假信息，相对而言，这种方式比一些交友网站更具优势。”

Over the past five years, the number of one-person households in China rose by 29 percent.
在过去五年中，中国的单身户数量上升了29%。

By 2020, according to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, 23 million Chinese men will have no choice but to remain bachelors.
据中国社科院预计，到2020年，中国将有2300万中国男性“被落单”。

相关词汇 更多信息请访问：http://www.engbus.cn/

twos and threes 三三两两
 
white-collar 白领
 
metropolis 大都市
 
let alone 更不用说
 
claim 所有权
 
one-person household 单户家庭，独身族
 
bachelor 单身汉