More on Love Day

The Guardian compiled some great shots of Valentine's Day in China. The first one resonates especially well; every time Mike and I go dinner, we see couples at neighboring tables on their phones rather than in conversation. Why even bother going out?!

The story behind Chinese Valentine's Day (also known as Qixi Festival, celebrated the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar) is actually quite lovely. Although there are different versions of the tale, it tells the story of star-crossed lovers (star-crossed because of overbearing parents and opposing ranks in society) who are allowed only one day a year to see one another, when a flock of birds creates a bridge over the Milky Way to reunite them.

www.chinesefortunecalendar.com

I'm kind of embarrassed to admit that I first heard this story while watching Karate Kid (2010), the one with Will Smith's kid. It was on constant rotation here, along with Thor and Spider-Man (the one with Tobey Maguire).