The Madrid Best Practices Case in Expo 2010 Shanghai

In the Madrid Case Pavilion

Madrid, the capital of Spain, is one of the greenish cities in the world. Owning a case pavilion at the Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA) in Expo 2010 Shanghai, Madrid demonstrates an environmental friendly social housing project as developed by its municipal government for the low-income citizens. There are two parts in the exhibitions, namely the Bamboo House and Air Tree. The Bamboo House mainly serves for displays and exhibitions. The Air Tree provides visitors with a comfortable open area for a rest. The exhibition pathway begins at the top floor of the Bamboo House, and it is connected with an escalator  from the ground level where visitors are waiting for admissions. There are separated entrances leading to the Spanish restaurant and souvenir shop. The entire building duplicates the design of the Madrid public housing with the application of ecological materials and installation of renewable energy resources. The outer layer of the House is encrusted with bamboo bark for the purpose of temperature control as well as noise insulation.

Bamboo House (L), Air Tree (R)

The Air Tree, which is adjacent to the Bamboo House, is a cylindrical structure covered all around with large movable window shades. During the day, shades are open to facilitate natural ventilation in the Air Tree. When shades are closed, they become the double-side projection screens for movies and light show performances in the evening. Wind wheels are equipped on the top of the structure, and there is a giant fan turning to ventilate the area under the Tree. Visitors enjoy listening to the lovely music while resting in a refreshing area. The Air Tree can also be served as a platform for a mini concert.

If you visit the Madrid Case Pavilion for the purpose of collecting a stamp, the Pavilion will not make you feel disappointed. A full collection of the stamps from the Madrid, Bilbao, and Barcelona Case Pavilions for your Expo passport will give you the priority to enter the Spain Pavilion through the fast access channel. If you are a fans of the Real Madrid Football Club, you will certainly get something that makes you feel excited.



A mini concert under the Air Tree at the Madrid Case Pavilion UBPA

Reopening of Fast Admissions to Spain Pavilion Expo 2010

Madrid Case Pavilion stamp

The Spain Pavilion, located in the Pudong section, is a popular attraction in Shanghai Expo 2010. Please refer to my video gallery for its videos. Due to its popularity, the admission queue is always very long. As mentioned in my previous blog dated August 13, 2010, visitors could skip queuing by going through the fast track channel with the required passports. To be eligible for the fast access, visitors have to collect a total of 3 stamps from the Case Pavilions of Madrid, Barcelona, and Bilbao in the Urban Best Practices Area in Puxi. Stamps have to be chopped on the souvenir passports. Due to the problems of fake stamps and passports, the channel was suspended for a period of 2 weeks starting at the end of August. To cope with the problem, a new set of stamps has been issued. The collection of stamps has now resumed and the fast track channel reopens for the Spain Pavilion.

The Spain Pavilion is one of my favorite programs in Expo 2010 Shanghai. It is worth visiting.  At the time of our visit in May 2010, the fast track channel for Spain Pavilion wasn't yet available. We went through the general admission route and spent 40 minutes on the waiting queue in the peak-time early afternoon. Comparing to many popular pavilions in Expo 2010, the queue-up time was not too bad at all. Although the queue was long, it moved fast.

Update on the Official Expo Online Lucky Draw

Ten visitors who had been to the Italy online tour at http://en.expo2010.cn won a lucky draw of a VIP tour at the real Italy Pavilion on September 9, 2010. Each of them also received a gift set including a flute concert ticket, a bottle of Italian red wine, and a souvenir pavilion pin. For the forthcoming lucky draw from the official Expo online offer, people who visit the virtual Australia online pavilion between 10:00am and 2:00pm Shanghai local time on Monday, September 13, 2010 will have a chance to win one of the 20 fast-access passes to the real Australia Pavilion.

Update on the Visitor Count

Since the opening of the Expo 2010 on May 1, 2010, the visitor count has accumulated a total number of 50 millions on the 133rd day yesterday, September 10, 2010. The Expo 2010 will run through a course of 184 days till October 31, 2010.