Enjoying the Leisure of Shanghai Expo 2010 without Any Crowds

A garden in UBPA

While hundreds of thousands of people were flooding into the Pudong region where national pavilions of Asia, Middle East, and Europe are located, we explored the peaceful side of the Shanghai World Exposition across the Huangpu River in the Puxi area. And we had achieved enjoying the leisure of the Expo 2010 without any crowds in the Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA). The UBPA is an exhibition district for representative cities around the world to showcase their innovative practices in urbanization. The UBPA also acts as a platform to connect cities in sharing their experiences in urban construction and development. Various representative cases are shown via exhibitions, presentations, seminars, workshops, networks, display boards, events, and performances. Showcase portfolios demonstrate a remarkable range of implementations and solutions to improve the quality of city life. Sample displays include low-carbon city, eco-housing, eco-art, sustainable urbanization, utilization of culture heritage, and technological innovations in built environment, etc. Apparently, UBPA is a good place for learning rather than entertainment.

Eco Housing

The UBPA includes a number of case pavilions and four Cases Joint Pavilions. Please refer to the page end of the Site Maps and Pavilions to view a full list of the presenting city cases from various geographical regions. In the northern part of the UBPA, built cases are demonstrated in simulated urban blocks. There are Case Pavilions of Alsace, Chengdu, Hamburg, London, Macau, Madrid, Makkah, Ningbo, Odense, Rhone-Alpes, Shanghai, Vancouver, and Xian. All of these case pavilions are close to each other. Therefore, there is no need for visitors to walk a long distance under the strong sunshine from one pavilion to another. In the central and southern part of the UBPA, several presenting cases are sharing under a large Cases Joint Pavilion. The temperature of Shanghai was as high as 35 degree Celsius at the time of our visit. Fortunately, we escaped from the hot weather by staying indoors to see a great variety of exhibitions in the UBPA.

London low-carbon case pavilion

We enjoyed very much our touring in the UBPA. There were no crowds, and the environment was naturally refreshing. We went straight into almost every pavilion without lining up for admission. When we were seeing a queue of more than 15 people, we returned later to achieve a non-waiting admission. Comparing with our first visit experience to the UBPA in May, there were comparatively more people now in July. It is perhaps due to the fact that more people learn about the fast track system requirement in the visits of the UBPA.

We spent a whole day in the UBPA but still had not yet finished seeing the exhibitions in details. There were lots of information to feed our curious mind. Anyway, I had taken photographs on the display board information and would like to learn about them in the later days. Apart from the knowledge acquisition, we also enjoyed the delicious food in the UBPA. There are many restaurants serving gourmet food from various countries. The restaurants were not crowded at all. We took a Spanish dinner at the Madrid Case Pavilion. The food was absolutely gorgeous. After the dinner, we watched the spectacular lighting show which was run by the Rhone-Alpes Lighting Pavilion. And we watched the entertainment show run by the Bremen Town Musicians. What a wonderful relaxing time we had! If possible, we would like to visit the UBPA again. The UBPA is worth visiting. 

UBPA in the evening
 

Bremen Town Musicians Night Show at the UBPA

 

Tips to Bypass Long Queues at the Popular Pavilions Expo 2010 Shanghai

The sign of reservation machine

The organizer of the Shanghai Expo 2010 has developed a few systems in the effort to cut down long queues at the popular pavilions. The most famous scheme is to make an appointment for the admissions to the China Pavilion and five Theme Pavilions by drawing reservation tickets from the reservation machines. Locations of the reservation machines are marked on the Expo map which will be distributed to visitors at each entrance gate. The attached photograph shows the eight reservation machines between the food mall and Portugal Pavilion in the Europe Square near the Shibo Avenue MTR Station. Machines are protected by green covers in the evening when they are not in use. In the Expo park, signs are posted to show the direction to the reservation spots. Please note that the reservation machines under the elevated pedestrian walkway in South Xizang Road close to Entrance Gate 2 only serve for the Theme Pavilions but not the China Pavilion. One Expo ticket is entitled to book an appointment for one pavilion. Tickets for China Pavilion usually finish within 15 minutes in the early morning once the gates open. Admissions to the China Pavilion could also be arranged by the Shanghai local tour if people join an one-day tour to the Expo at 200 yuan including coach transport. Both the China Pavilion and Theme Pavilions are permanent projects. Their exhibitions, therefore, will be continued even after the closure of the Expo 2010.

Direction to the reservation machine

Appointments for the Pavilions of Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Portugal, and Sweden can be obtained via the pavilion reservation machines. The Macau Pavilion only allows admissions with appointments through their reservation machines. The ordinary queue channel is closed during daytime. People without an appointment voucher should attend the pavilion before 9:00pm when there are no more ticket holders. Reservation tickets for Sweden Pavilion allow attendees to play their huge slide as well. The two reservation machines outside the pavilion hand out tickets twice each day, with 600 at 09:30am and 200 at 5:00pm. If visitors miss the time slot which is issued on the ticket, they are not allowed to play the slide but still can get into the pavilion through the priority entrance.
The fast track system is another scheme to obtain reservation tickets, through the collection of stamps from the Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA), for the admissions to some of the popular pavilions. For methods and procedures, please refer to my previous blogs dated June 12 and July 8, 2010. The fast track system was initially set up for the admissions to the China Pavilion and Saudi Arabia Pavilion. It, later on, also applied to the admissions to the Pavilions of Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. However, the policy changed very recently. It now only serves for the China and Italy Pavilions. Offers for all other pavilions are suspended. This shows that the policy may change from time to time.

Reservation machine in Europe Squar

Fast channel admissions to the Spain Pavilion are granted to those who visit the Spanish Cases in the UBPA of Puxi. After the collection of a total of 3 stamps from the Cases of Madrid, Barcelona, and Bilbao in the UBPA, attendees have a reward to enter the Spain National Pavilion through the priority channel.  Stamps have to be chopped on the souvenir Expo passport. VIP admissions to the Spain Pavilion had once been offered to the customers who took dinners at the restaurant in the Spain Pavilion at Zone C. However, the policy has just been changed. The VIP admission is now granted to those who purchase a bottle of Spanish wine. VIP access to the Finland Pavilion is offered to the customers who hold the Finnair frequent-flyer membership card or a recent Finnair boarding card.

One may bypass the long queues by making online appointments. Online bookings are available for the admissions to the:
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. general Motors (SAIG-GM) Pavilion at Zone E (www.gmexpo2010.com) - available in Chinese language only
State Grid Pavilion at Zone D (www.magicbox2010.com) - available in Chinese language only
Shanghai Corporate Joint Pavilion at Zone D (www.expo2010scp.com)
Requested information for the online form includes Expo ticket numbers and mobile phone numbers.

The Portugal reservation machine

Reservations tickets for the Shanghai Corporate Joint Pavilion can also be obtained via phone booking by sending SMS to 106575255111 or calling (8621) 55356688 during 9 to 5 office hours. The Finland Pavilion allows phone bookings. One should send a text 85401 plus targeted time slot to the number 1066666620 (e.g. 584010930 for the time slot 09:30am.) A return message will tell whether or not the time slot is available for booking. If available, one should send a second message 01 plus time slot (e.g. 01 + 0930 for the time slot 09:30am). A reservation code will be returned upon successful booking.

During the period from August 22 to 28, visitors can cut in line for the admissions to the Netherlands Pavilion if they purchase a special Green Transport Card at 40 yuan (US$5.85). The card is issued by the Expo organizer, and half of the income will be donated for planting trees in an attempt to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The Pavilions of Spain, Norway, Luxembourg, USA, and Brazil now consider offering fast access to the card holders in September. The sale point of the card is at "We are the Family" Pavilion in Zone C.

People who register with the official Expo online visits will automatically enroll in the lucky draw for the admissions to some of the popular pavilions. The assigned pavilions may vary from time to time. For example, those who visit the virtual USA Pavilion online today (August 13, 2010) between 10:00am and 2:00pm will be entered for the lucky draw to win a fast access to the real USA Pavilion with a free meal at the Pavilion's VIP room.

Some of the national pavilions give priorities to their citizens. Priority accesses to the France Pavilion are granted to the visitors holding a valid French passport. Similarly, the Canadian can go straight into the Canada Pavilion through the priority channel. There are many ways that you could bypass the long queues. Keep an eye on the update information from the official Expo website.

Recommended Expo Entrance Route - Less Walking and Less Exposure to Sunlight

Map showing the way to Expo Gate 9

Today, August 8, 2010, marks the 100th day of the World Exposition 2010 since its opening in Shanghai. As to date, the total accumulated numbers of visitors have exceeded 37 millions. With a huge amount of visitor flow each day, many people are keen to identify the easiest route for Expo entries. Which is the easiest access entrance gate? Which gate is the one with the least numbers of people waiting? Which gate saves visitors' energy in walking? Which gate provides more shades? In addition to the entrance gate information that I have written on June 16, 2010, I am going to provide you with the update condition that I have experienced.  

Expo Entrance Gate 9

On the first day of our arrival at Shanghai in the July visit, we planned to go to the Expo in the evening on the same day. We traveled to the Madang Road MTR station via Metro Line 9. To get change to the Metro Line 13 which only serves for the Expo site, we had to go through Expo Entrance Gate 9 on the ground level. Please refer to the map from the attached photo that I had taken from the signboard at the Madang Road Metro Station. After we had got out of the underground, we walked along a street without any shades for about 15 minutes to reach Expo Gate 9. The sunlight was still strong even though it had already been 5 o'clock in the late afternoon. Fortunately, there were only a few visitors waiting for the security check at Gate 9. The waiting area was empty, and there were cooling mists released from the top of the shelters to lower the temperature of the environment. Please refer to the video below. After we had passed Gate 9, we went straight to the underground (Line 13). Getting off the train at the Shibo Avenue Station, we reached Zone C of Expo Pudong section. Due to the distance walk for the link of Metro Line 9 and 13, I personally won't put this route as a first priority for recommendations. However, if people would like to go to the southeast of Zone C or west of Zone B, this route facilitates their traveling. 

The area in front of Entrance Gate 8

As mentioned in my previous blog dated June 16, 2010, the Expo Entrance Gate 8, Houtan Road, receives the greatest number of visitors each day. The distance between the Houtan Metro Station and Expo Entrance Gate 8 is around 20 minutes walk, and there are not any shades. Due to the availability of the free shuttle bus for the connection of the Metro station with the Expo gate, visitors can save their energy for the walk. However, if you go there during peak hours, you may need to spend tremendous time in queuing for the shuttle bus. We didn't meet crowds of people as we reached there at 11:00am. In the waiting area of the gate, there are more shades, and there are more pipes delivering cooling mists. After passing through the gate, visitors need to take a 15-minute walk across a large square to reach the nearest pavilion or shuttle bus stop. There are not any shades in the square.This route may have more chance to expose to sunlight. However, if people will target to go to Zone C for the European National Pavilions, this is the fastest route.

Pedestrian walkway Entrance Gate 2

We have tried various admission routes. Among all, I prefer going via Expo Entrance Gate 2 because it is just located by the side of the South Xizang Road Metro Station. This saves visitors' energy for the walk from the metro station to the Expo entrance. Visitor flow is comparatively small at this entrance as this is the Puxi section of less interest to visitors. When we reached this gate at 09:00am, the peak hour, there were not many people waiting for the security check. Therefore, we quickly passed the gate. After getting into the Expo site, we walked for less than 15 minutes under the shades on the elevated pedestrian walkway to reach the shuttle bus stop. One of the bus routes goes within the area of Puxi. Another bus route goes to Pudong via the cross-river tunnel. We got onto the cross-river bus, and it took 6 minutes to reach the first stop at Pudong. This stop is sited in the area behind the Japan Pavilion. Out of our expectation, this bus route is quick and convenient. If we took the ferry, we would at least wait for half an hour. The bus continues going along the Shibo Avenue in where many popular pavilions can be accessed. I find this route with the least walking distance to reach our targeted pavilions. This route is the one with least exposure to sunlight. Therefore, Expo Entrance Gate 2 is my recommendation.

Expo Entrance Gate 9, Madang Road, with release of cooling mists to lower the temperature of the environment

Flying in the Latvia Pavilion at Expo 2010 Shanghai

Latvia Pavilion night view

Hey! Can you fly? Yes, you may have the chance to fly in the Latvia Pavilion at Expo 2010 Shanghai.Through the glass wall of the vertical wind tunnel of the Latvia Pavilion, I saw two men fly freely and happily (see video below). They looked rather like the astronauts flying, springing, tumbling, looping, and skydiving in the air. It is amazing and fantastic. This is the Technology of Happiness designed in Latvia by Aerodium. It is specifically developed for the Shanghai Expo 2010 with the application of advanced technology. The show of the Technology of Happiness lasts 30 minutes, and the capacity for audience is about 400 persons.

The outlook of the Latvia Pavilion is unique and pretty. The external wall is covered with 100,000 pieces of transparent plastic plates with the size of 15 square centimeters each. When the breeze is blowing, the plates flutter and shimmer. The majority of the plastic plates are in silver color. In between, there are red, yellow, orange, blue, and green plates to symbolize the beautiful nature such as land, wind, sky, forest, and ocean. At the entrance of the pavilion, there is a spiral staircase leading to the top floor. This represents human's continuous effort in moving life to a better level.

Entrance to the Latvia Pavilion

There are three levels in the pavilion. The first floor is a Latvia souvenir shop and cafe. When I was sitting in the cafe to finish my lunch, I on and off heard some vibrating noises coming from the above. It sounded like an airplane engine. At that time, I knew nothing about the pavilion. What was inside? After the pavilion visit, I recognized that it was the engine from the base of the wind tunnel. The second floor of the pavilion is mainly a platform on where the lucky visitors prepare themselves for flying. Here they receive instructions and training, sign the required legal forms, change into Aerodium outfits, put on helmets, and prepare to go upstairs to the wind tunnel. The third floor of the pavilion is the exhibition hall in where the show is conducted. The vertical wind tunnel which is surrounded by circular glass walls stands at the center of the hall. There is a glass door. By the side of the door, there is a control room with machines and buttons.  But we didn't see anybody there throughout the period of the show. In the outer area of the tunnel, there is an one-meter high barrier to avoid visitors getting too close to the glass wall. Outside the glass wall, there is staircase going down to the lower level. This also acts as the entrance from where the performers come up to the stage. On the floor of the tunnel, there is a large cushion for preventions of injuries.

Top of the vertical wind tunnel

Apart from the vertical wind tunnel, there are interactive computers hanging on the walls of the exhibition hall. This allows visitor participation. Visitors can learn something about Latvia from the slide shows. After watching the Technology of Happiness, I continued staying in the hall. Nobody asked me to leave the pavilion. Therefore, I watched the Technology of Happiness again. I took lots of videos. However, the reflected glare, as caused by the afternoon sunshine, on the glass wall had led to a mild defect on the videos.

The Latvia Pavilion is rather small, but its design is unique. I spent half an half in queuing for the Latvia Pavilion during the afternoon peak hours, but I obtained more than I had expected. Not many people would have noticed that such a small pavilion of a small country would give you a stunning reward. After the visit to the Latvia Pavilion, I am interested to learn more about this country which was out of my knowledge. The Latvia Pavilion has successfully built up a good image for its country. I would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciations to the Latvia Pavilion. The Technology of Happiness is brilliant and wonderful. Spectators, however, hadn't clapped their hands because everybody was holding a camera or video recorder in hands. Instead, there were excited voices of joy.

Latvia vertical wind tunnel

How can people experience the Technology of Happiness?

Go to the third floor of the Latvia Pavilion. Fill out some basic personal data by logging onto the interactive computer. Answer some questions about Latvia. You will immediately find out whether or not you have been chosen to try out the Technology of Happiness. You need a little bit of luck to have the chance to fly in the vertical wind tunnel. I didn't see any visitor participation in the wind tunnel flying during my visit to the Latvia Pavilion. I believe that there are time zone limits for visitor experiences. Furthermore, I don't know whether or not the activity will be suspended due to overcrowd visits during summer holiday.

Latvia's Technology of Happiness

Latvia's Technology of Happiness

Where to buy Shanghai Expo Tickets

Expo Volunteer Service on the street

It is easy to make inquiries about Expo 2010 while staying in Shanghai. Expo information services supported by volunteers are available in high streets, Metro Stations, and China Mobile shops of Shanghai city center. Inquires in English language could be made via the Shanghai Call by dialing 962288 from any landline or local mobile phones in Shanghai. The 24-hour hotline, Shanghai Call, is operated by China Telecom, and staff could handle with ticket sales, licensed products, site tours, and complaints. Besides, inquiry services provided by China Mobile are also available in English language at 12580. The official Expo hotline at +86-21-962010 provides services in 12 languages including English, French, and Japanese, etc.

Expo tickets

Upon arrival at Shanghai city on our first day, we obtained ticketing information from the Expo Volunteer Service Counter (see attached photo). The 3-day admission tickets can only be purchased from the Bank of Communication. Since it was already in the afternoon at the time of our inquiry, the 3-day admission tickets had already been sold out in the nearby branch. We had to travel to the official point of sales running by the Bank of Communication located at Number 80, Nanjing East Road (see attached photo). This is about 10 minutes walk from the Nanjing East Road Metro Station. All sorts of tickets, except the evening tickets, are always available in this sales point with closure at 4:30pm each day. The standard single day admission tickets  are for sale at various places in Shanghai including selective local supermarkets, convenience stores, or on-site sales points. For the evening tickets, people can only obtain them from the sales points at the entrances to the Expo site. For prices and classifications of tickets, please refer to my previous blog dated May 4, 2010. Apart from local sales, overseas visitors can purchase tickets via authorized travel agents in their countries. 

Please be reminded that the Standard Tickets cannot be used during the period between October, 1 and 7, 2010 (National Day Holiday) as well as between  October 25 and 30, 2010 (the last week before the closure of the Expo). People have to use Peak Day Tickets instead. Although it is now more than 2 months before October, sales for the Peak Day tickets are very tight. Admission tickets for the Expo closure on October 31, 2010 have already been sold out. It is not sure whether or not there are any more sales. Tickets for October 30 are temporarily out of stock. There are limited number of tickets left for October 1.

Official point of sales for Expo tickets

 

Shanghai Hotel Accommodations Close to Expo Gate 2

People who would like to visit Expo 2010 always ask questions regarding Shanghai hotel accommodations. Based on my personal experience, I could only tell something about the hotels in where we stayed recently. Please refer to my previous blogs dated July 18 and July 27, 2010. We had been to Shanghai a number of times. For the hotels in where we stayed years ago, I would not mention them because the information might be out of date. In my impression, it is not difficult to get a room reservation. Hotel accommodations seem to be sufficiently supplied during the Expo period in Shanghai. Room charges are reasonable. Hotel accommodations in China are generally inexpensive when comparing to those in many other countries.

We greatly enjoyed our visits to the Expo 2010. When we were passing through Gate 2 of the Expo site, we spotted a few hotels/ motels nearby. They are located opposite to or by the side of Gate 2, South Xizang Road, in Puxi. Please refer to the following photographs of the mentioned hotels. They are estimated to be within 5 to 15 minutes walk from Expo Gate 2 as well as the South Xizang Road Metro Station. It is convenient as of Expo visits. However, I know nothing about the qualities of these hotels.

I believe that there should be more hotels located in the area close to Expo Gate 2, but we didn't see them. If people would like to stay in a hotel within a walking distance to the Expo site, these hotels may be of good choices. Puxi is an old residential area at the west side of the Huangpu River in Shanghai. The gates at the Expo Puxi Section apparently are comparatively close to the residential area than those at the Pudong Section. Pudong is a newly developed area with better city planning. Roads are large and wide. Therefore, the distance between the Expo Pudong Gates and residential areas could be far apart. It may take a long time for travelers to walk from their hotels to the gates, even though the hotels may claim that they are close to the Expo gates. 

We spotted a small hotel outside Expo Gate 2

There is a hotel behind the gate

This is the hotel of the previous photo. The name of the hotel could now be identified.

This is another hotel opposite to Expo Gate 2

The hotel is estimated to be within 15 minutes away from Expo Gate 2

The hotel is estimated to be within 15 minutes away from Expo Gate 2

Note: These hotels may have other branches using the same names located at different sites of Shanghai.

Comparisons between Shanghai Marvel Hotel and Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel

Shanghai Marvel Hotel room view

We stayed in the Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel in our previous visit to the Expo 2010 in May. The Renaissance is a 5-star grand hotel located in the Putuo district. The room in where we were staying was super deluxe (Please refer to the photographs in my previous blog dated July 18, 2010 entitled "Going to Shanghai Expo again"). The hotel is brand new just opened this May. The Langao  Station of Metro Line 7  is just located opposite to the hotel. This is 9 stops away from the Houtan Station for the access to the Expo site through Gate 8. Metro Line 7 can also take visitors directly to the Changqing Road Station, Yaohua Road Station, and West Gaoke Road Station for the access to the Expo Gate 7, 6, and 5 respectively. The only deficit of the Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel is that there is a lack of shopping facilities nearby.

Shanghai Marvel Hotel room view

This time, we stayed in the Shanghai Marvel Hotel which is located right in the heart of the city, opposite to the People's Square. The hotel is surrounded by many popular shopping arcades and transport links Number 1, 2, and 8 Metro Lines. The Metro station, Daishiji, is just located next to the hotel. Metro Line 8 goes directly to the Expo site stopping either at South Xizang Road Station to reach Expo Gate 2 or Yaohua Road station to reach Expo Gate 6. There are only two stops between Daishiji and South Xizang Road Stations. Starting my journey from the Marvel Hotel at 08:40am, I reached the Expo  Entrance Gate 2 at 09:00am. The Marvel Hotel is close to many famous tourist spots such as the Bund, Yu Garden, and Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street. The hotel is also not far away from the Yan'an Road Sub-River Tunnel going across the river to Pudong.

Shanghai Marvel Hotel bathroom view

The Marvel Hotel previously was the building of YMCA which was built in 1929. Therefore, it is also named as Marvel YMCA Hotel. It is now a heritage building with modern interior facilities. The building was fully renovated early this year. Therefore, we did not feel anything old inside the hotel. The room was quite nice, spacious and comfortable. The bathroom is completely separated from the sitting area (See attached photos and video). Complimentary broadband internet access is available in the room.

When comparing with the Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel, the 4-star Marvel Hotel charges less and is more convenient. Just outside the Marvel Hotel, an Expo Volunteer Counter is available on the street. If you target for the Expo visit, the Marvel Hotel may be a good choice. However, if you would like to enjoy a peaceful and super comfortable environment, you may consider the Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel. We like both of them.

The lobby of Shanghai Marvel Hotel

Shanghai Marvel Hotel - Room view

Hotel Planner

Transportation from Shanghai Pudong International Airport to Downtown

Mobile phone vending machine

Many people asked as how to form their own tours to the world exposition in Shanghai. In this post, I am going to write more details about our journey to reach Shanghai city center.

On July 19, 2010, we took Cathay Pacific CX368 which departed Hong Kong at 08:55am and landed Shanghai Pudong International Airport at 11:30am. On arrival, we immediately felt the atmosphere of Expo 2010. There were propaganda and there was an Expo Mascot Haibao cartoon welcoming us. The way getting through the immigration gate was quick as there were quite a large number of check-out points. Disposable mobile phone vending machines, Expo volunteer service, transport information machine, and tourist information center are available in the arrival hall. 

Expo Volunteers

There are several options for visitors to travel from Pudong Airport to Shanghai downtown. Apart from 10 airport bus lines, Maglev Trains and Subway Trains are in services. It takes only 8 minutes for the Meglev Train to run from Shanghai Pudong International Airport to Longyang Road station. The service operates at an interval of 15 to 20 minutes starting from 06:45am to 09:40pm every day. The charge is CNY50. From Longyang Road Station, visitors can transfer to Metro Line 2 which passes through many of Shanghai's popular locations (See MTR map below). For a trip from Longyang Road Station to city center, the taxi fare is estimated to be over CNY100. We experienced the Meglev Train ride about 2 years ago, and I forgot the taxi fare for the connection. The fare could be even higher if there is a traffic jam. Traffic jam is common in Shanghai during peak hours.

Apart from the Meglev Train, travelers can also take Metro Line 2 located between Terminal 1 and 2 at the Pudong Airport. The Metro Line service is much cheaper (CNY9 for the entire journey), but it takes longer time, perhaps an hour, to reach downtown hotels.  In addition, it needs to get change to the main branch Metro Line 2 at Guanglan Road Station (See MTR map below).

Shanghai Pudong International Airport

We decided to take taxi for transportation to city center. The taxi stand is just outside the arrival hall of the airport. There were only a few passengers waiting for the taxi at the time of our arrival. Our destination was Marvel Hotel which is located right in the center of Shanghai, opposite to the People's Square. The 35-minutes journey cost us CNY168. On the way, we saw a new railway station under construction, and we spotted the Oriental Pearl Tower in the far distance. The 2010 Expo site then appeared from far to close views. Indeed, we were approaching towards the Expo direction. As our taxi was up on a highway, we could only see the magnificent China Pavilion which was high enough to catch our sights. We also spotted Australia Pavilion because it just sat beside the highway. Indeed, we were on the flyover going across the Expo site. Going ahead, our taxi passed through the Lupu Bridge which connects Pudong and Puxi over the Huangpu River. When we caught sight of the Expo Puxi section, we couldn't identify the pavilions because most pavilions were not very high and the taxi ran very fast. By the time we arrived at Marvel Hotel, it was 12:40pm. 

Shanghai Metro Line Map

(Click to enlarge the map)

Going to Shanghai Expo Again

Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel

My husband and I visited the Shanghai Expo 2010 in May. We enjoyed the trip very much. It is fantastic. We had acquired a lot of knowledge from the Expo. We introduced it to our friends. They like it too.  We stayed in the Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel which is a branch of the Marriott chain. The hotel was brand new just opened in May 2010 at the time of our stay. It was very nice. Please see attached photographs for the room views The buffet was so rich that it gave us sufficient energy for the Expo walk. The Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel is not close to the Expo site, but it is just next to the underground Metro Line 7.  Therefore,  it is convenient. The deficit is that there are insufficient shopping facilities nearby. There is only a small convenience store and a few low-price restaurants nearby.

Renaissance Shanghai Putuo Hotel

We will be going to Shanghai Expo again. We will take the Cathay Pacific Airways flight tomorrow early morning. Since we know the Expo well, we don't make much preparation. My husband reminds me to bring along with my cap. Last time, I wore my cap even though inside the pavilions. It was because I moved around in the crowds to take photographs and videos. My white cap could easily catch my husband's eyes so that he could fetch me in the crowds. Since we have already visited the most popular pavilions such as the China Pavilion, Saudi Arabia Pavilion, Germany Pavilion, France Pavilion, Czech Republic Pavilion, Spain Pavilion, etc., we expect ourselves to be much relaxed this time. We have planned to watch the shows in the Expo Culture Center, to stroll in the parks, and to dine in the famous restaurants, etc. Hopefully, there is no need for us to join the queues this time. I am cheerful. 

We have checked the weather in Shanghai. It will be sunny with 30 degrees Celsius tomorrow Monday. There will be heavy rain on Tuesday. Both Wednesday and Thursday will be sunny with very hot temperature about 31 degrees.

Source of Energy - The Heart of the Germany Pavilion

Source of Energy

Among the various exhibitions in the Germany Pavilion at Expo 2010, we appreciate the "Source of Energy" the most. This is the highlight of the Germany Pavilion. The show is very impressive. It is really a fantastic and marvelous journey.

After we had finished our tours moving around from one section to another section of exhibition in the Germany Pavilion, we subsequently came to the last part of the exhibitions. Going down stair and through a door, we got into a large hall where was rather dark. We then found ourselves standing among crowds of people who were spreading around a large circular hollow space. Seeing through a metal-wire barrier, we spotted a giant sphere hanging in the air at the center of the hall. When the show started with glimpse of lights on the metal sphere, we recognized that people were standing around the sphere in different levels. There were around several hundreds of people at a time watching the ten-minute show performed by a 2,000kg metal sphere. We later on learned that the sphere was 3 meters in diameter and covered with hundred thousands of LEDs.

Watching the Source of Energy

Two narrators came into the hall to lead the show. A young German man named as Jens and a Chinese girl Yan Yan started the introduction with dialogues. Yan Yan invited one of the volunteer visitors to blow on her microphone. We were surprised to see the sphere respond to the blow and start moving. It looked like that the movement of the sphere was pushed by the blow. Everybody cheered up and shouted. Jens encouraged us to shout loudly. Our noises made the sphere swing like a hanging pendulum. Yan Yan divided us into two groups. The group with louder noises made the sphere swing more to the opposite side. The louder we could shout together, the greater gradient the sphere would swing and turn. The colorful image patterns on the surface of the sphere kept changing, twinkling and sparkling. This had lightened up the entire hall. As we shouted to a greater level, the sphere revolved faster and the lights turned brighter than before. This cheered us up and let us feel the power of co-operations in the delivery of energy to our city.

Source of Energy performance in the German Pavilion

Germany Pavilion at Expo 2010

Germany Pavilion

The Germany Pavilion is one of the popular tourist attraction spots in Shanghai Expo 2010. Occupying a large area measuring around 6,000 square meters, the pavilion architecture is perceived to be in a combination of three multi-dimensional polygons. The relatively large tops and small feet of the polygons provide visitors with shelter protection from rains and sunshine. Looking from another angle, the polygonal structures appear to have assembled into a sculpture building with partial outdoor decks underneath. The silver outer layer of the building gives itself a robotic-feel character. Indeed, it  is  a membrane type building material. The interior of the building  is very large. It consists of a number of corridor-shape exhibition halls and a round-shape performance hall.

Open area exhibition

The Germany Pavilion is named as "balancity" which comes from the words "balance" and "city". The theme of the balancity aims to emphasize the importance of the balance between urbanity and nature, modernization and preservation, innovation and tradition, community and individual development, work and recreation, and also globalization and nationality. On admissions, visitors receive a souvenir  paper wind-wheel on which there is a pattern of the pavilion logo symbolizing the polygonal shape of the pavilion with German flag colors in black, red, and yellow.

Germany scenery as the background

There are in total 13 sections in the exhibition. The first two parts under an open area demonstrate the natural landscape and scenic suburban areas of Germany respectively. The third part of the exhibition lets visitors experience a dynamic tunnel while standing on a moving conveyor belt. In the fourth section, visitors stepped onto the underwater escalator. Getting to the top of the escalator, visitor will see the harbor view of Hamburg, in a harmony of renewal and preservation of buildings. The planning office in the fifth section displays the constructions of future cities. The exhibition of energy balance shows how solar roofs and a wood chip power plant generate more regenerated energy than houses consume in a year, and as a result surplus electricity is fed into the public power supply network to make good profits. The sixth section is the exhibition of intercultural gardens. These include school gardens and Germany allotment gardens, etc. Kids enjoy playing on a slide, while adults are fascinated with the interactive activities. The seven section is all about new inventions and news products made in Germany. The eighth part is the displays from innovative factories. In the ninth section, visitors view the parks of German cities by covering their heads with a bell-shape equipment in where 360 degree pictures are shown. The tenth part is a workshop of artworks. The eleventh section is a plot for art and cultural performance show. The twelfth part is the dialogue between China and Germany focusing on the improvement of city lives. The ultimate is a show of energy source.   

Expo Passport - The Best Selling Souvenir at Expo 2010

Stamping Expo passports at France Pavilion

The issue of Expo passports was originated in 1976 Montreal Expo of Canada. Expo passports were served as exposition admission tickets at that time and turned into popular souvenirs in later expositions. Since the opening of the 2010 Shanghai Expo, Expo passports have become the best selling souvenir and are always sold out quickly at the licensed stores inside the Expo park. Souvenir passports which carry the watermarks of different national pavilions on different pages are offered in four colors. Collecting stamps for the passport from visiting pavilions has added a bit of fun to the visits. Enthusiasm for the collection of pavilion stamps persists among visitors. The stamp serves as a proof of the pavilion visit. Most of the stamps are in unique beautiful design. To some visitors, the Expo passport serves as a gift to friends.

Souvenir Expo passport

The majority pavilions provide visitors with the stamping services on the pathway towards the exit. A few pavilions offer the services at the entrance hall. The France Pavilion, perhaps, is the only one giving out stamping services to the visitors in the last few minutes of their queue-up time for admissions (see attached photo 1). I quite like the idea. This makes use of our boring queue-up time. Some pavilions request the stamps to be affixed on the designated pages. For example, the stamp for the France Pavilion has to be put on page 14 which posses a watermark of the image of its pavilion (see attached 2). For long time, we were not aware of the watermarks printed on the passport pages. Until one day, my eyes were caught by the watermark of the "Saudi Arabia Moon Boat" on page 35. It was good that the staff of the Saudi Arabia Pavilion had avoided putting the stamp on its watermark (see attached photo 3).

On our first day of the Shanghai Expo tour in May 2010, we entered the site at Puxi. As there were fewer souvenir shops in Puxi than Pudong and our first priority was going to get the City Name Card, we failed to purchase the passport. On the second day, we got it right after our admission to Pudong. We purchased one for each of us. My husband had his passport stamped while I kept my passport blank. Although we understood that a passport with a full collection of stamps could be bid for a few hundred to a few thousand RMB dollars, we were not too fancy about the stamp collection. I wonder who will be so silly to spend a few thousand RMB dollars to purchase a stamped passport souvenir.

Watermarks of different national pavilions

Regarding the stamp collection, I read some negative reports on the internet. An article mentioned that some visitors were holding a few hundred passports for stamping, and some left the pavilions without any touring right after they had obtained the stamps. In our experiences, we did not see these pictures. Such rumors are questionable. In the reality, all visitors have to do their stamping quickly because there is always a long queue moving behind you.  It is not feasible for a person to take up some time to stamp a few dozens passports. The long queue will certainly push him/ her go. For the popular pavilions, people need to line up for hours to reach the stamping counter. Will they solely come for the stamps but not the touring after queuing for a few hours? For the pavilions which are lack of attractions, it is reasonable that people take a quick glance and turn to other pavilions. If people are fancy in the collection of stamps, they can get many stamps from the Africa Pavilion. There are 42 countries and one organization in the Africa Pavilion. Similarly, visitors can obtain a number of stamps from the Urban Best Practices Area in Puxi. I saw some people ask to have the stamps chopped on their Expo maps because they didn't have any passports. This worked.

A new version of Expo passports was released on June 22, 2010. Anti-counterfeiting technologies have been added to the passports. There are not any more pavilion background patterns on the pages or the page number footnote. The supply of the Expo passport is now sufficient. If visitors still can't get a passport, they may try the souvenir shops with a low traffic volume. There is one at the basement level of the Expo Axis providing rich stock of souvenir passports. 

100,000 Visitors Had Benefited from the Fast Track System

Signboard explaining the fast track system

The Shanghai Expo authority yesterday announced that more than 100,000 visitors had benefited from the fast track system to obtain reservation tickets for the designed popular pavilions. During the process, visitors should firstly obtain a copy of the City Name Card. After the card has been stamped with 16 chops from the Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA) Cases (please refer to my blog dated June 12, 2010 for details), the visitor can exchange the card for a reservation ticket to one of the three popular pavilions - the China, Saudi Arabia, or Italy Pavilion. The Italy Pavilion started joining the system this month. In order to be able to get accessed to the Italy National Pavilion, one should go to the Cases of Venice, Bologna and the country's environment protection department to collect 6 UBPA stamps. There are limited editions of the cards. Every day the system offers 500 chances to the admission to the Italy Pavilion, 180 to the Saudi Arabia Pavilion, and 2,000 to the China Pavilion. Visitors who are interested in the Germany, Spain, and Czech Republic Pavilions, may go to the three countries' cases to collect a certain number of stamps. A notice is posted at the Information Counter for the explanation of the procedures (See attached photo). Once you have got the reservation ticket for the China Pavilion, you don't need to follow the time slot. It is quite free. The staff will only check the date. He/ she will let you go in even though the booking time has passed.

UBPA at Puxi section of Expo 2010

The fast track system has made the UBPA become popular. The number of attendances to the UBPA increases to almost 10 folds than that before the initiation of the system. The system has also generated more visitors to Puxi. A university teacher was very lucky to be the 100,000th visitor receiving the City Name Card. The luck had brought him a gift package including reservation tickets to the China, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Germany, and Czech Republic Pavilions.

Besides the offers from the fast track system, one can get accessed to the designated pavilions if he or she holds a valid VIP card. Some foreigners said that they could skip the queue to enter their country's pavilions by showing their legal passports. For example, a visitor who is holding a valid French passport is allowed to get into the France Pavilion straight away. I, however, have no way to validate this information.

Pavilion of Public Participation at Expo 2010

Pavilion of Public Participation

The Pavilion of Public Participation is located at Zone B in Shanghai Expo 2010. Its theme is "Our Home". It highlights an idea that "Each Action You take Will change Our Life". By participating in an interactive program, visitors learn about the history and progress of Shanghai Expo before its opening to the public. The first part of the exhibition is named as "Visual Impressions" which brings up an Expo memory in Shanghai. A full record of the Expo 2010 is interpreted via photo exhibitions on a large screen. A great number of photographs are presented. Photo topics include the application, biding and preparation of the exposition as well as the construction of the Expo site. When a visitor is standing within a distant of 2 meters in front of the screen, an image bubble appears and magnify the photograph. If the visitor moves close to the screen, the bubble will sink to the bottom. When moving away from the screen, the bubble rises to the top. The bubble will follow the visitor's movement going from one screen to another. The second part of the exhibition is labeled as "Experience". Visitors can take part in an interactive activity to design an ideal city by selecting images from the touch screen monitor on a machine. Visitors will experience hosting an exhibition and picture the future.

Inside Pavilion of Public Participation

We spent less than 5 minutes on the queue to get into the Pavilion of Public Participation. As the pavilion was not large, visitors finished their touring fast. And only a few of them were interested in the activity participation. We finished our tour in the Pavilion of Public Participation within 10 minutes' time. There were not much to see.