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Trends and Buzz
Fanning the flames of interracial romancePosted by Maya Alexandri on Wednesday, May 23, 2007 at 8:38 AM
 Qingniao Photos ad, south of Lama Temple in Beijing China's craze for wedding photos — with or without the wedding — is well known (and documented by Su Fei in this Sexy Beijing episode). Up until now, however, dressing up to snap kitchy glam shots in romantic locales was the domain of Chinese couples. But Qingniao Photos apparently has its finger on the pulse of a profitable Beijing trend: there are enough rich laowai guys with Chinese girlfriends — and sufficient social acceptance of interracial couples — to make a market. The Qingniao Photos ad below literally says, "the most beautiful scenery + the happiest lovers = the most enchanting memories," but what Qingniao Photos really wants laowai men to remember is: foreigners may never be able to assimilate in China, but that doesn't mean you can stint on the wedding photos. |
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Comments on Fanning the flames of interracial romance
Is this an ad?
Huh? (@ this post)
this is pure satire
"sufficient acceptance of interracial couples" ?
I think the moment people stop considering couples "interracial" will be the day that "everyone" accepts them.
My 2 rmb.
You should add a link to the photo studio in question.
Using foreign men in adverts is nothing new - even if they're a bit old or not that good-looking - I'm not sure there's any broader subtext than that, they're just there because they're "exotic" or otherwise associated with attractiveness (money, power?).
Assimilation is not really on the cards - and racial issues are foremost among the many reasons - but I don't think this advert really tells us much.
Well well! I learned something today! I thought you must have meant "skimp" on the wedding photos in the last sentence.
But "stint" apparently was a synonym for "skimp" sometime in the 16th century. Didn't have that meaning in Webster's 1913, but apparently has it again now!
My shorter Oxford hints that, for that usage, it's an ME derivation from "stunt".
Good clean fun!
So is it just me, or do chinese women in general go out of their way to dress in an overtly sexualised way?
Now I am not referring to the young, teenage chinese girls who more than likely were Australian born. I am referring to the older women, who tend to talk to each other in Mandarin, suggesting they were born in China.
The emphasis on high cut boots, low cut dresses, socks pulled up just above the knees, super-short skirts and bizarre combinations of clothing items that attract stares from men young and old, are a distinct feature of the urban walkways of Sydney, especially in China town.
And when I say "older women", I also mean many women in their fifties. I would say that I have been quite surprised by how many women I have seen who look like grandmothers, yet dress like one may expect a teenager to dress.
So is it just me noticing this? Well no. Ms B was the first to bring it to my attention.
My wife doesn't dress this way, but many of her contemporaries do. As far as an explanation goes, she believes it has something to do with the previous Communist lifestyle.
I suspect there may be a lot of truth in that.