光棍节来临：中国单身男女的心酸寻爱记

In Shanghai, the city's main "marriage market" nestled in People's Park is teeming with more traffic than usual. Concerned parents of unmarried children posted personal ads and photos, boasting their education, salary levels and height and weight proportions. The advertisements line the perimeter of the park, and many anxious parents sit along the curb, hoping to meet another set of parents to make a good match.
在上海，人民公园中赫赫有名的“相亲市场”一定比平时还要爆满。那些为单身孩子忧心忡忡的父母们展示着子女的个人信息、照片，夸耀他们的学历、薪水、身高、体重等各种信息。相亲广告贴满了人民公园的外围墙，而心急如焚的父母们则在旁等候着合适的人选前来与自己儿女配对。

To the west in the city of Xian, singles can reenact a famous Tang Dynasty love story or learn about the principles of love at Qujiang Cave Ruins Park, which claims to be the "first love-themed park in China."
往西走，在古都西安，单身人士们能参与扮演一个有名的唐代爱情故事，或在曲江寒窑遗址公园学习爱情守则，据说这是中国第一个爱情主题公园。

However, in a society dominated by children who grow up without siblings (due to China's one-child policy), finding love on Singles Day is unlikely to be as easy as a walk in the park.
然而在一个以独生子女为主的社会里（缘于中国的计划生育政策），在光棍节成功“脱光”可远远没有听上去这么简单。

"For a lot of young men, they feel that what can make them more attractive to their potential dates is their good education, a good job and a lot of money ... [and] a car and apartment handy so they can attract more women," said Dr. Chang Wei, a psychologist at Beijing United Family Hospital. "That leads to a lot of young men working 10-12 hours a day with no time to socialize. Parents feel they have to step in and help them find dates, and sometimes the men are okay with that."
“很多年轻男人认为，自己的教育背景、工作和钱财将决定自己在异性面前的吸引力……如果还有车有房的话，那就在女人眼里更加抢手了，”北京和睦家医院的心理医生常伟说道。“这导致很多年轻男性每天工作10-12小时，连社交的时间都没有。他们的父母感到自己需要出手帮助自己孩子寻找对象，而孩子们也往往同意这样做。”

Not everyone desires to be matched up, though. In a survey of white-collar workers on popular Chinese jobs site Zhaopin.com, about 70 percent of married or committed individuals said they missed being single.
然而并不是所有年轻人都愿意被凑成对。中国知名的智联招聘网站曾进行过一项针对白领的调查显示，70%已婚或已订婚的受访者都表示：他们怀念单身时光。

Once frowned upon in China, divorce is now common, too. In 2009, more than 2.46 million couples divorced in the country, almost twice the number in 2001.
离婚在过去的中国是不大能被接受的，然而现在已变得十分普遍。2009年，中国有246万对夫妇离婚，这个数字几乎是2001年的两倍。

But like many singles in China, Alexandra Shi, an undergraduate student at Beijing Foreign Studies University, is looking for love. This year, she'll mark the day with her fellow single friends, and they will likely take one chopstick and make a wish to not be "a 'single stick' anymore."
Alexandra Shi 是一位来自北京外国语大学的本科学生，她和许多单身人士一样，正渴望找到真爱。今年她将和其他几位同样单身的好友一同庆祝光棍节，并且她们会拿起一根筷子，许下“尽快摆脱单身” 的愿望。

"Being single is not cool...for me, being in a relationship would do me good I guess," Shi said. "But being single for now doesn't make my life miserable. Definitely don't want to celebrate next year's Singles Day though!"
“单身并不酷……对我来说，也许谈恋爱对我更有好处吧。” Shi 小姐说道。“虽然单身的时光也不能算痛苦，但明年这个时候，我绝对不要再过光棍节了！”