Shanghai's World Expo pavilion will be open half an hour earlier
and close half an hour later than the rest of the world's
pavilions, organizers revealed at the second participants' meeting
of the Expo in Shanghai yesterday.
The participants decide how long they will open their pavilions,
said Chen Xianjin, a deputy director of the Bureau of the Shanghai
World Expo Coordination Committee. And so Shanghai has elected to
open its pavilion for 12 hours a day during the week and 13 hours
at weekends and on holidays. The pavilion will stop selling
admission tickets two hours before the closing time each day.
Vicente Loscertales (left),
secretary general of the International Expositions Bureau, talks
with delegates during the second participants' meeting of the World
Expo Shanghai 2010 in the city's Four Points by Sheraton Youyou
Hotel yesterday. The World Expo Shanghai pavilion will be open
longer than any of the overseas pavilions, organizers told the
two-day meeting attended by more than 400 officials and
businessmen. (photo: Shanghai Daily)
The organizers hope residents will visit the pavilion at night
to keep it from being overcrowded during the day, Chen said.
In the evening at the pavilion visitors will not only be able to
enjoy the mild breezes from the Hangpu River but also special
entertainments right up to closing time, said Hu Jingjun, another
deputy director of the Bureau.
Evening entertainments proved to be very popular at the Hanover
Expo in 2000, said Hu. "Visitors can watch performances at the
pavilions even after the gates have been shut."
To cope with the 70-million visitors during the Expo, the
organizers are preparing a special reservation system.
After intending visitors have bought Expo tickets they can
reserve passes for the more popular pavilions by telephone or
through the Internet, said Chen. "We recommend that people use our
reservation system to reduce queues and help the organization of
the pavilions."
Disabled visitors will also be catered for. As well as easy
access facilities throughout the pavilion there will be a special
exhibition for the disabled.
At the end of the meeting, the organizers launched a new
participants' services Website where countries and international
organizations can discover what is happening and contact the
organizers and service providers.
More than 400 officials and businessmen are attending the
two-day meeting in the Four Points by Sheraton Youyou Hotel to get
an update on preparations for the event.
"The meeting is one of the most exciting moments of the Expo
preparations," said Vicente Loscertales, secretary general of BIE.
"It is the outcome of years of hard work and paves the way for next
year's progress."
Shanghai's Mayor Han Zheng and Wu Jianmin, president of the
International Expositions Bureau, addressed the opening
ceremony.
(Shanghai Daily November 16, 2007)
