Monday, January 27, 2014

Rent-a-Boyfriend a Big Hit During Chinese New Year

PHOTO: The most dreadful day of the year for single guys and girls is approaching in a few weeks. No, it’s not the Valentine’s Day. In China, there is a day that can be a hundred times worse than the Valentine’s Day: the Lunar New Year.
Posted by RocketNews24 on Tuesday, 21 January 2014
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_XDvhwCvpPqKUdeLYOTHNs32F5_rtCWCDVH_Wefjl2tOucIdy5b74mHDDcSYadEprH8rAuHpGvaE_Cs2ybwU3IG5h5XEZm43igWPCp8imRf8ulTXzsch_nFSxIV9awDD9XdpF1S7P2xo/s1600/china-valentines-day.jpg
http://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/344388/china-valentines-day.jpg
http://www.myfatpocket.com/sex-love/rental-boyfriends-a-big-hit-during-chinese-new-year.html


During this once-in-a-year family gathering, there is one inevitable question that always comes up and that young adults cannot hope to avoid being asked by their relatives: “So… when are you getting married?”

For those who are already attached, this may be a good conversation starter or nice way to segue into the topic of their new significant other. But for the singles – especially the ladies – being asked the same old question each year is just a never-ending nightmare.

Enter the rental boyfriend...


If you look to rent a boyfriend, 301 listings pop up and rates vary from 300 yuan a day to 8.80 yuan, though that gentleman hasn't said if it's an hourly rate.
PHOTO: If you look to rent a boyfriend, 301 listings pop up and rates vary from 300 yuan a day to 8.80 yuan, though that gentleman hasn't said if it's an hourly rate.
PHOTO: STR/AFP/Getty Images.

China has some interesting matchmaking and dating practices. There are love hunters who track down potential wives for China’s richest bachelors and there are “leftover women”, who are criticized for being over 27 and unmarried.

In some cases, when a male dies too young, families have “ghost marriages”, exhuming female corpses and marrying the pair.

So, it’s natural for many young Chinese to want to allay their parents’ anxiety over their single-dom. And now they can take to Alibaba-owned online retailer Taobao, tweets George Chen at South China Morning Post.

That’s the equivalent of shopping for a date on Amazon or eBay.
Posted by Mamta Badkar, Business Insider | January 14, 2014 1:32 PM ET
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Yni2dul2dYpO8pSnvk3ejC2BuDVe2bnDzAcEOYiVn3M29ICro0w9Jpc3Z3YT5dDUnj0aXYcDSNe2wIepjslQfsHU7cccPtR9gK649sDbmQ9ljQsvI_qyYd40GUlePBiVRGZiXAj9xU0/s1600/china-boyfriend.jpg
http://wpmedia.business.financialpost.com/2014/01/china-boyfriend.jpg?w=620
http://business.financialpost.com/2014/01/14/chinas-biggest-online-retailer-taobao-has-a-rent-a-boyfriend-section/


It was probably only a matter of time before someone saw this extremely awkward season as a potential business opportunity. On Chinese shopping site Taobao, young men have been putting themselves up for “rental” to accompany the ladies back to their hometowns and pay respects to the elders as a “boyfriend”.

Photos of these “rental boyfriends” are available, and the prices are also clearly stated, so you can choose one that fits your budget as well as your parents’ and grandparents’ check lists.

These counterfeit companions don’t come cheap though. Rental fees start from 600 RMB (97 USD) a day, and that excludes meals, transport and accommodation.

Any extra costs incurred during interactions with the elders, such as driving them around, would also be charged to the ladies. Hugs, holding-hands, and goodbye kisses on the cheeks are free, but you can pay a little more for extra services: 30 RMB (5 USD) per hour for shopping or catching a movie (double amount for horror movies) together, 50 RMB (8 USD) per hour for having a meal together, and 50 RMB (8 USD) each time for a formality kiss.

Would you ladies out there want to rent a boyfriend like the one in the picture, or, as one of the Chinese ladies put it, “look for a free one”?
By RocketNews24, Tuesday, 21 January 2014
 

Resting Warrior and the Forest Monster
Resting Warrior and the Forest Monster
PHOTO: Resting Warrior and the Forest Monster
Would you ladies out there want to rent a boyfriend like the one in the picture, or, as one of the Chinese ladies put it, “look for a free one”?
Picture by MartaNael, Digital Art / Drawings & Paintings / Fantasy, ©2013-2014 MartaNael
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFTCuKcq5v3RLSYzFQff6EDdc265waSnZpzxmJo3XZUudgaVAhantX0Vc7iSqItSjRfrxMk1N-MiJx0o5EYvO0iENhMw5odzlPslqcIOchvHLExuUrLy9hAAVdu5sUTiVr1wc5e_VFo4/s1600/7cb951f0e94798808bf21f52cdb0fc90-d67jimf.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuSWD7kwhuGvo1X0Z_M4_uQbXqldA6laJgMmHRywkhPrpZwl1Q1jofNTUf68PgMIloXODp8d5j8z-3I0Kbuf-V1CmaWhbfOzI37QyiuqIGo7Kk6BK4gU8OrUMMU4UmA52hhgNn5eYAfE/s1600/7cb951f0e94798808bf21f52cdb0fc90-d67jimf-1.jpg
http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/153/7/c/7cb951f0e94798808bf21f52cdb0fc90-d67jimf.jpg
http://martanael.deviantart.com/art/Resting-Warrior-and-the-Forest-Monster-375464967



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