As the cost of an average wedding in Syria creeps up year after year, more and more youths have to shelve their wedding plans. With the crisis in the country approaching its second year, the idea of getting married almost seems to be a far-fetched dream.

Nearly a year ago, Syrian youths managed to some extent wedding costs in line with their social class and income.

Back then, it wasn't peculiar to see Hollywood-style glamorous weddings that cost millions of Syrian pounds, or a couple riding a Rolls Royce or horse-drawn wagon on their way to a five-star hotel, where French food, Dutch flowers and Egyptian or Lebanese pop singers are ferried in private airplanes.

However, the ongoing crisis that erupted in Syria in mid-March of last year has cast a dim pall on the poor and the rich alike.

A year ago, it's very common to hear the horns of cars, especially over the weekend, as the newlyweds and their guests usually parade the city in a procession of luxurious cars.

Not any more.

Instead of hearing those pleasant horns, sirens of ambulances are heard in most thoroughfares, reminding people that confusion and unrest are still reining over the country.

Many weddings have been postponed, and many others were limited to a few people with small indoor parties, due to the general sad mood in the unrest or the unbearable burden cast on many young people in the crisis.

A few wealthy families held weddings outside the country, mainly in neighboring Lebanon.

Exorbitant housing prices have created an acute shortage of affordable housing for the poor. Soaring gold prices were also a matter in a country where brides expect no less than one eye- catching gold wedding gift, as required by the traditional custom.

Recent government reports showed that the rate of bachelorhood in Syria has reached 39 percent of the country's 23 million residents.

Mazen Hamawi, 27, who is not yet married, said the high cost of dowry and wedding ceremony is his main obstacle.

"This problem stands before us and we feel we cannot make our dreams come true. One cannot have the wife he wants or establish a happy family," said Mazen.

Gold prices have increased by almost ten fold in about 15 years, while the value of Syrian pound has sharply declined since the outbreak of unrest. One gram of Gold is now sold at 4,000 Syrian pounds (about 70 U.S. dollars) at the Syrian markets.

Recent financial reports said the pound has lost around 60 percent of its purchasing value.

Mohammad Jabri, a 29-year-old engineer, said, "even though I am able to afford the wedding cost, I wouldn't get married now."

"How can I rejoice and celebrate while my homeland is grieving? " he said.

Syria has been gripped with domestic unrest since March of last year. The protest movement has started peacefully demanding modest reforms, but protesters' demands gradually snowballed to the toppling of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. Over the past few months, protesters started to take up arms, citing what they called "the regime's bloody crackdown" on them.

The Syrian government said last December that "armed terrorist groups" had killed more than 2,000 army and security personnel, while the UN said recently that "well over" 7,500 people have died in Syria's violence.