\"Super Single\'s Day\"

Nov. 11, 2011, or 11/11/11, has been recognized by many Chinese people as Super Single\'s Day or Divine Single\'s Day as this year falls in numerical harmony with the annual Nov. 11 Single\'s Day, an informal holiday for those not involved in committed relationships. Single\'s Day has been celebrated on Nov. 11 since the 1990s, because the date is entirely composed of the single digit \"1\". But many Chinese bachelors and bachelorettes are looking at 11/11/11 as an auspicious date and they are determined to end their unattached days by taking the plunge of getting married or entering into a romantic relationship on that day. ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY People around the world prefer to get married on auspicious dates, and Chinese speakers have no shortage of traditionally lucky numbers: the number 10 means perfection; 9 implies eternity; 8 refers to wealth; 6 bring lucks and 7 does not. Official records show that last year\'s most sought-after date was 10/10/10, with over 11,000 couples registering for marriage in Beijing alone. While the number was lower than 19,000 on Sept. 9, 2009 (09/09/09) and 15,000 on Aug. 8, 2008 (08/08/08), it was still far above average. Those dates, as well as this Friday\'s 11/11/11 and next year\'s 12/12/12, appear just once a century. Although the number 11 does not have any particular significance for Chinese speakers, some believe it could positively influence their luck by having a marriage certificate dated for that magical day. \"It\'s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to come up with a wedding date like this, and we won\'t miss it,\" said Wan Qiang, a husband-to-be from east China\'s Jiangxi Province. Wan and his girlfriend of seven years, Tao Yiting, have decided to register on Friday. \"We will also have an easy-to-remember anniversary,\" Wan added. They are one of many couples creating a surge in marriage registrations in cities across China for that Friday. Couples have been making appointments since early October, according to Lei Peng, a worker at a grassroots marriage registration station in Jiangxi\'s provincial capital of Nanchang. Moreover, reports show that Shanghai\'s civil affairs authority had received over 3,200 applications for Friday\'s registration as of Tuesday. It has become difficult to book a hotel for a wedding ceremony this Friday in some areas, although weekdays were not usually booked in the past.