A future groom and bride smile while posing for pictures on the steps in front of the catholic St. Joseph's Cathedral on Wangfujing in Beijing on June 8, 2010.
A future groom and his bride pose for pictures on the steps in front of the catholic St. Joseph's Cathedral on Wangfujing in Beijing on June 8, 2010. A study by the government-backed Chinese Academy of Social Sciences this year concluded that more than 24 million Chinese men of marrying age could find themselves without spouses in 2020 due to sex-specific abortions with experts saying the phenomenon, blamed on the one-child policy in a nation where the cultural preference for boys over girls is strong, could lead to more Chinese men seeking brides abroad, particularly in Asian nations like Vietnam. The historic cathedral in central Beijing is a popular backdrop for wedding photos, often done before the actual wedding date in rented outfits, first established in 1653 by Jesuit Father Lodovico Buglio
