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Free admission to tourist attractions, extended office hours: Chinese cities roll out measures to encourage couples tie the knot on Qixi_我的网站

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一 | CAPE TOWN, South Africa -- Angry protesters in Cape Town confronted the king and queen of the Netherlands on Friday as they visited a museum that traces part of their country’s 150-year involvement in slavery in South Africa.King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima were leaving the Slave Lodge building in central Cape Town when a small group of protesters representing South Africa's First Nations groups -- the earliest inhabitants of the region around Cape Town -- surrounded the royal couple and shouted slogans about Dutch colonizers stealing land from their ancestors.The king and queen were put into a car by security personnel and quickly driven away as some of the protesters, who were wearing traditional animal-skin dress, jostled with police.The Dutch colonized the southwestern part of South Africa in 1652 through the Dutch East India trading company. They controlled the Dutch Cape Colony for more than 150 years before British occupation. Modern-day South Africa still reflects that complicated Dutch history, most notably in the Afrikaans language, which is derived from Dutch and is widely spoken as an official language of the country, including by First Nations descendants.King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima made no speeches during their visit to the Slave Lodge but spent time walking through rooms where slaves were kept under Dutch colonial rule. The Slave Lodge was built in 1679, making it one of the oldest buildings in Cape Town. It was used to keep slaves -- men, women and children -- until 1811. Slavery in South Africa was abolished by the English colonizers in 1834.Garth Erasmus, a First Nations representative who accompanied the king and queen on their walk through the Slave Lodge, said their visit should serve to “exorcise some ghosts.”The Dutch East India Company established Cape Town as a settlement for trading ships to pick up supplies on their way to and from Asia. Slaves were brought to work at the colony from Asian and other African countries, but First Nations inhabitants of South Africa were also enslaved and forced off their land. Historians estimate there were nearly 40,000 slaves in the Cape Colony when slavery ended.First Nations groups have often lobbied the South African government to recognize their historic oppression. They say their story has largely been forgotten in South Africa, which instead is often defined by the apartheid era of brutal forced racial segregation that was in place between 1948 and 1994.First Nations people have a different ethnic background from South Africa's Black majority.___AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa。

A newlywed couple poses for a photo after receiving their marriage certificate at the marriage registration office in Wuhu, East China's Anhui Province, on August 29, 2025. The day is also the Qixi Festival or Chinese Valentine's Day.
From group weddings and free admission to tourist attractions for newlyweds, to extended hours at marriage registration offices, cities across China rolled out a range of measures around Wednesday to make it easier for couples to tie the knot on Qixi Festival, often known as Chinese Valentine's Day.
Tourist attractions in several Chinese cities, including Meishan in Southwest China's Sichuan Province, Zhoukou in Central China's Henan Province, Yueyang in Central China's Hunan Province and Hanzhong in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, have announced free or discounted admission for newlyweds to mark Qixi Festival.
The Jiangkou Sunken Silver Museum in Meishan is offering free admission from August 19 to 23 to newlyweds who register their marriages in the city between August 19 and 21, an employee surnamed Zhao told the Global Times. She said couples can enter the museum by presenting their marriage certificates and identity documents.
She said the museum also offers interactive activities for couples, including photo opportunities with golden bowls and cups symbolizing a marriage "stronger than gold," as well as a scavenger hunt for artifacts associated with love, such as ancient rings.
Zhao said the initiative was designed to embrace the festive spirit of Qixi while also conveying the museum's best wishes to newlyweds.
At the Taihao Fuxi Mausoleum cultural tourism area in Zhoukou, couples can receive free admission on August 19 by presenting their marriage certificate and identification.
Junshan Island in Yueyang has set up a special marriage registration station for Qixi Festival, where couples can register their marriages and receive their marriage certificates on site. Couples who register on the island that day will also be granted free admission to the attraction for life, media reported.
Meanwhile, the Hanjiangyuan Scenic Area in Shaanxi is offering 99 couples lifetime free admission. The benefit is registered to the two individuals in each couple and, in a playful twist, becomes permanently invalid if either person changes partner.
Qixi Festival has long been a popular date for couples to register their marriages. Marriage registration offices in several Chinese cities have extended their opening hours to accommodate couples hoping to tie the knot on the traditionally romantic occasion.
In Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, marriage registration offices across the city are accepting both online appointments and walk-ins on August 19. Local civil affairs authorities said the offices will remain open until all couples waiting to register have been served, even if online appointment slots are fully booked.
Similar measures have been introduced in Dazhou, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, where registration offices will remain open through the lunch break and extend their hours in the evening. In Dachuan district, staff will arrive an hour early, forgo their lunch break and stay beyond normal closing time until all couples present have completed their marriage registrations.
A Dazhou resident surnamed Mo told the Global Times that she had initially worried about whether she would be able to secure an appointment on August 19, but found there were enough slots available for marriage registration.
"Choosing Qixi to get married makes the day even more meaningful," Mo said, adding that she and her husband wore traditional Chinese hanfu for the occasion.
On August 13, a group wedding was held at Fuxi Cultural Square in Xihe county, Northwest China's Gansu Province, as part of celebrations for Qixi Festival. About 100 couples from across Longnan, including newlyweds and couples celebrating their silver and golden wedding anniversaries, took part in the ceremony, Gansu Daily reported.
During the event, the newlyweds signed pledges promoting simpler wedding customs, including zero or low bride prices, while rejecting excessive bride prices, lavish ceremonies and competitive spending. Participants also jointly read an initiative advocating simpler marriage customs and pledged to embrace commitment and thrift in their married lives.
China registered 3.275 million marriages in the first half of this year, down 264,000 from the same period last year, while 1.383 million divorces were recorded, according to data released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs last week.
According to statistics, China recorded 3.539 million marriages and 1.331 million divorces in the first half of 2025, compared with 3.43 million marriages and 1.274 million divorces in the same period of 2024.
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