Couples shrug off 'widow's year'

Many Chinese couples are planning to marry in the 2010 lunar year, despite it being a "widow's year" and considered bad luck for brides.

According to the Chinese lunar calendar, a widow's year is any lunar year that does not have a first day of spring. These years are believed to lack yang or masculine energy to balance the feminine yin.

Next year, the year of the tiger, will begin on Feb 14 but the lunar spring will have already begun on Feb 4.