Chinese counting on lucky number 8

BEIJING, China (CNN)  -- Eight is a lucky number in China. The word for it -- ba -- sounds so close to the word for wealth that many people believe eight is a number that is linked to prosperity.

So it is no surprise that the opening ceremonies for the Olympic Games begin at 8:08:08 p.m. on 8/8/08.

"It's not that the government believes this, but it had to choose a date, so why not respect the people's feelings?" Xia Xueluan, a sociologist at Peking University, told the Christian Science Monitor.

The date will be a special one, long remembered in this nation. For years, many Chinese couples have made plans to get a marriage license on Friday, while others hope to have "Olympic" babies.

The Chinese try to get the number eight in addresses, phone numbers, even car license plates. An airline reportedly paid $300,000 five years ago to buy 8888-8888 for its telephone number. With an explosion of cars in the country, bidding sometimes takes place for lucky plates.

Nine thousand weddings will take place in the capital on Friday. According to the state-run Xinhua News Agency, that number will be more than twice the previous single-day marriage record.

The wedding blitz is not confined to China. Many couples in the United States are getting married on that date. WeddingChannel.com has seen a 213 percent increase in registry entries for weddings on August 8, 2008, compared with the second Friday in August last year, which fell on August 10, Summer Krecke, the deputy editor, told The Associated Press.

Last year, parents in China began trying to conceive babies who would be born on August 8. Hospitals have had to add extra beds. Many doctors will perform planned Caesarean sections, a common practice in China.

One prospective father whose wife planned to give birth naturally told the China Daily: "If my wife is lucky enough to deliver an 'Olympic baby,' the luck means something more than family joy."

The faith in the number eight was shaken May 12 -- 88 days before the Games were to begin -- when an earthquake killed nearly 70,000. That caused some bloggers to worry about the number being bad luck this year. They also pointed to a massive snowstorm on January 25 (1+2+5=8) and widespread protests against Chinese rule in Tibet that happened on March 14 (3+1+4=8).

But many Chinese still believe the lucky number brings the promise of many gold medals in the country's coming-out party.

Chinese also believe six is lucky, while seven is bad -- and four is really bad.
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天超人人为8最赞，6也赞，4最渣。
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老米国人没得聊了，我觉得米国人对天朝看法还是不愿意放下架子。颇有点自以为是。

开头简直太赞了，我激动的不行

BBS如是说。。。觉得处于下届东道主的身份，还是比较低调的。而且对昨晚评价颇高。
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简单翻译要点：
英伦觉得下届可打个平手，“昨晚很牛x，我们相信下届也不差，昨晚看得人余生都留下了不也抹去的印象，确实对我们下届设下了一个巨大挑战。”
London 2012 'can match Beijing'

London can match Beijing's spectacular Olympic opening ceremony when it stages the Games in 2012, said Olympics minister Tessa Jowell.

"We should not be intimidated," Jowell said. "We will do something just as wonderful and just as extraordinary.

"Beijing has done something absolutely stupendous that everyone there will remember for the rest of their lives.

"It is our turn now and we look forward to it. It is a huge challenge but it is one that we will rise to and emulate."

London 2012 officials have admitted they will not be able to commit the same resources to their opening event.

[ 本帖最后由 友藏 于 2008-8-9 08:59 编辑 ]

[posted by wap, platform: BlackBerry]

低调攒RP阿

引用:

原帖由 心御剑 于 2008-8-9 08:16 发表
五星红旗不就代表党了

大哥 五星红旗是国旗谢谢 中国共产党的党旗难道您不知道张什么样么？

引用:

原帖由 心御剑 于 2008-8-9 08:16 发表
五星红旗不就代表党了

你把党旗往哪儿放？

没有太多负面报道么

引用:

原帖由 熊市亨利 于 2008-8-9 09:15 发表

大哥 五星红旗是国旗谢谢 中国共产党的党旗难道您不知道张什么样么？

五星红旗当中最大的一颗星是啥呢。。。
这旗要我说是相当不和谐

引用:

原帖由 友藏 于 2008-8-9 00:33 发表
光中国文字确实秒杀地球上绝大多数文字
我要不是中国人 看中国字我都容易自卑

我看蒙古字更自卑……

引用:

原帖由 guycc 于 2008-8-9 02:07 发表
我就觉得小姑娘能把这歌当众唱好，真是不容易……

对口型假唱吧？

湿润倒确实是很湿润，我哭了

不唱五星红旗，唱什么？歌唱满清黄龙旗？

NEW YORK TIMES的报道挺冷嘲热讽的

标题'Games in Beijing Open With a Lavish Ceremony'
用了LAVISH这个有点贬义的词
不过话说NYTIMES向来对天朝有偏见,经常采访些64的人当作国人的意见

[ 本帖最后由 upning 于 2008-8-9 10:16 编辑 ]

NYT的冷嘲热讽不是一天两天了：
Yet even amid such a huge police presence, the crowds that gathered near the Olympic Village on Friday afternoon were giddy and proud that China could show itself to the world.

不知道没有警察保护，如果出了什么事儿，他们更是要高潮了。

引用:

原帖由 upning 于 2008-8-9 10:13 发表
NEW YORK TIMES的报道挺冷嘲热讽的

标题'Games in Beijing Open With a Lavish Ceremony'
用了LAVISH这个有点贬义的词
不过话说NYTIMES向来对天朝有偏见,经常采访些64的人当作国人的意见

老子天朝就是有钱你要咋的

NBC请了时代杂志的中国编辑来跟主持人一起解说

基本上也是全程赞歌