7,000 gold-digging Chinese women apply for a matchmaking cruise

The JiaYuan matchmaking service in China is hosting a modern-day Cinderella ball. And friends, it’s a juicy one.

Basically, they’re taking applications to fill 80 spaces: 40 men and 40 women. The men must be worth over $7 million, and the women, well … “they will be stringently screened for their looks, physique and intellect, with marriage counselors on hand to judge whether they are ‘kind, gentle and tasteful,'” organizer Cheng Yongsheng told the Xinhua news agency, according to Reuters.

Apparently, after last year’s event (which includes a banquet, a ball, a five-star hotel and a cruise, all over the course of just two days), ten couples began dating and one couple has even gotten married. It’s like a reality show without the cameras.

Over 7,000 women in China have reportedly applied. Seven thousand! If you’re “kind, gentle and tasteful,” maybe you should, too. But you’re going to have to speak Chinese to navigate the website, and you’re also going to have to admit to yourself that you’re a gold-digger.

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If you’re into this, you should also check out Mike Barish’s article on Air New Zealand’s matchmaking flight.
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In-flight matchmaking from the seat pocket in front of you

Paging through the November 2007 Continental in-flight magazine really makes you think air travelers are a bunch of loners. I found 3 large advertisements for matchmaking services in that issue.

I won’t mention the company’s names but their headlines read:

  1. Eligible?
  2. We have all been there. All your life you wonder if you’ll find her. Does she even exist?
  3. The more you have to offer the more difficult it seems to find the person who is right for you.

Hmm, is anyone really that bored while flying that they would page through the mag and suddenly realize they are, in fact, lonely?

The main question is: does extensive traveling make you lonely OR is it loneliness that makes you want to travel more.