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随着人们生活水平的提高，新人们对婚礼的期待也越来越奢华，从豪华礼服到婚礼设计，如今的新郎新娘们有了更多更好的选择...

Luxury wedding boom in China

China's wedding industry is booming thanks to higher standards of living and new fashion trends that appeal to young couples. From luxurious gowns to wedding planners, Chinese lovers have never had so much choice.

Choosing the right wedding dress is never easy, no matter where you live.

This young bride - Sally Jing - is shopping in one of Beijing's more up-scale bridal shops, and is literally spoiled with options.

She has invited around 200 people to her wedding reception in Beijing, and is also planning a second reception in her boyfriend's home-town in south China.

For many of China's upwardly mobile young people, a wedding is an opportunity to show-off their wealth and status, while conforming to traditions.

Only a few years ago, many Chinese brides would rent wedding dresses. Now, one popular choice is to make a splash in one-of-a-kind hand-made gowns.

Li Fei, a bridal ware designer, says today many couples shun cheap materials in favor of more luxurious fabrics.

Li Fei said, "In the past, people used to rent their wedding dress, or buy a cheap ones because they would wear it only once. Nowadays, young couples have a very different attitude. Because it is a once in a lifetime chance to show off, they pay much more attention on the quality and character of the wedding dress."

One of the people commenting on the spending habits of Chinese couples is Zhang Li, editor of Public Marriage Information, a monthly magazine specializing in bridal ware.

She says, on average, Beijingers spend around 50-thousand yuan, or some 7,300 US Dollars for their wedding.

Because of this lucrative market, a whole range of businesses have sprung up to cater to the wedding industry.

In traditional Chinese culture, marriage is highly valued as an institution - this is reflected by the millions of weddings that are tracked every year by the state-run Wedding Industry Committee.

And according to the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs, 11,458,000 couples were married in 2009, a nine percent increase compared to the previous year.

词汇解释

1.appeal to 对 ... 产生吸引力，呼吁，恳求，申诉

Many newspapers appeal to the crowd.
许多报纸受到人民的欢迎。

2.gown[gaun] n. 长袍，长外衣

The girl is all the more beautiful in her wedding gown.
那个女孩穿着婚纱格外美丽动人。

3.up-scale adj. 大规模

4.bridal['braidl] adj. 新娘的，婚礼的 n. 婚礼

She tried on her bridal dress.
她试穿上结婚礼服。

5.upwardly mobile adj. (社会、经济地位)向上升的，有上升趋势的

An upwardly mobile generation.
社会地位上升的一代人

6.splash n. 飞溅的水，污点，卖弄 v. 溅湿，溅开

The story was splashed across the front page of the newspaper.
这篇报道刊登在报纸头版显著位置。

7.one-of-a-kind adj. 每种只有一个的

8.lucrative adj. 获利的，合算的

Her husband is reaching after a more lucrative situation.
她丈夫正在谋求一个待遇较佳的职位。