2010 World Expo Post-Visit Reviews

Reservation spot at Zone E Puxi section

I visited the world expositions in Japan and North America previously. Comparing to my previous experiences, I enjoyed the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai of China the most. There were lots of fun and interests. The site was clean, spacious and pretty. Exhibitions were attractive and creative. The only deficit was that too many people flocked to the popular pavilions but were not interested in other displays that were lack of innovative design. In the meantime, I would like to express my overall impression about the organization of the Shanghai World Expo. In my opinions, the Expo 2010 is systematic and well-organized. Facilities are well equipped to prepare for a huge number of visitors. Information services are within easy access. 

A volunteer helps for reservation tickets

The free intra-site transport services gave us a good chance to rest our legs. Among the popular pavilions, queues were mostly organized at the Saudi Arabia Pavilion. There was a cooling machine standing by the queue. The shelters were designed to allow good ventilation. Though waiting for long, the queue kept moving sluggishly. There were televisions over the queuing site at the Shanghai Corporate Pavilion. The shelter for the queues at the Pavilion of Future was covered with artificial grass layers. The grass kept swinging when breezes blew. This created a sense of cooling comfort to us. At the time we were queuing for the German Pavilion, security guards were insufficient. Parts of the barriers were made of soft ropes. Occasionally, we saw a few persons jump into the queue. In fact, there were so many people that the shelter was not large enough to cover all waiting people. Similarly, many people had to line up under the strong sunshine at the UK, Switzerland, and Japan Pavilions. The design of pavilions organized by the Chinese government has already considered the protection from direct sunshine around their buildings. Many pavilions from other countries, however, do not have any external shelters. No matter how many people were waiting outside the pavilions, interiors were not crowded at all. And there was +-not any time limit for visitors to stay in the pavilions. 

Computer screen for selection of tickets

Reservation tickets are required for the entry to the China Pavilion and other 5 Theme Pavilions. When we were passing by the reservation spot at around 10:30am on the first day of our visits, we were still able to obtain tickets for the Pavilion of Future. All tickets for the China Pavilion, however, had gone.

Instructions and directions for the Expo site were clear. There were many volunteers providing help. Shades and resting areas could be found everywhere. Toilets were within easy access. We brought along with an empty bottle, and we could easily get drinking-water to fill it up for a few hours use. Restaurants and ice-cream kiosks were available in each zone. In some resting areas, mist sprays jetted out from the ground to soothe people. It had already been quite hot in Shanghai during May days. The Expo is sited by the river. There were occasional breezes refreshing us. My journey to the Shanghai Expo 2010 was fantastic. I will visit it again in July.