Better city, better life: Shanghai preparing for Expo 2010

One of the world’s largest cities, Shanghai is China’s major financial and cultural center, located in the eastern part of the country. The city will soon host Shanghai World Expo 2010, scheduled to start on May 1 and to run through October 31, 2010. It is expected to be visited by 70 million people, including foreign guests.

Shanghai is not new to being a major international center. A former fishing town, it grew into a major Eastern financial center in the early 20th century and still fills this role as successfully as ever. Photo: 492-meter-tall, 101-storey Shanghai World Financial Center, the third tallest building in the world.

Shanghai’s life is closely interrelated with water. Its name contains the hieroglyph for sea (pronounced hai), while the city is physically divided into two parts by the river Huangpu, a tributary of Yangtze.

The larger part of Shanghai’s residential zone is located on the west bank of the Huangpu, while the east bank hosts the business center, Pudong.

In the 19th century, Shanghai hosted British, American, French and other countries business missions. The influence of the Western culture has penetrated every part of city life, from architecture to the local mentality.

Shanghai’s population exceeds 18 million people. The city will play host to Shanghai World Expo 2010 which begins May 1.

The preparation never stops here. Workers earn 3,000 yuan ($440) a month for their hard work, not bad for a construction worker in China.

Nearly all of Shanghai’s tourist sites are closed to visitors now, including the Shanghai Bund with its many historic European-style buildings housing banks and expensive boutiques, the Huangpu embankment with its excellent view of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, and the streets near the foot of the tower. These areas have been turned into big construction sites. The embankment is being covered with floral patterns, and a pedestrian cloverleaf junction is being constructed above a busy intersection.

It will be up to residents and visitors to decide whether Shanghai has become a better city because the World Expo 2010.

Security has been tightened in Shanghai in the run-up to the Expo. Every foreign visitor is registered with particular vigilance in hotels, while cars entering designated important zones are being searched with dogs.

Many Shanghai streets are narrow and winding, but it is almost impossible to get lost here. City maps are available at every waste basket.

The World Expo 2010 budget is officially $4.5 billion. The real cost will not be disclosed until it’s over. This is China’s Olympic tradition.