Half price Tuesday for Shanghai tourists

Tourists pose for photographson
May 3on the 259-meter-high transparent walkway in the Oriental Pearl
TV Tower, one of the most popular destinations for tourists during the May
Day holiday, when Shanghai attracted more than 2.45 million tourists,
about 20,000 more than last year, according to the Shanghai Tourism
Administration.(Photo Source: Shanghai Daily/ Zhang Ming)
Photo Gallery

BEIJING, May 6 -- Ten more tourist attractions will
offer a 50 percent discount on admission prices on Tuesdays from May 5, 2009,
the Shanghai tourism authority said.

The Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, Zhujiajiao Ancient Town,
Oriental Land in Qingpu District and Fengjing Ancient Town in Jinshan District
are among the "half price Tuesday" scenic spots, Labor Daily reported.

The tourism authority has listed 18 tourist
attractions, including the Oriental Pearl Tower, the World Financial Center and
Jinmao Tower, in the discount scheme.

On February 24, the first day of the scheme, the
Oriental Pearl Tower saw three times the usual number of tourists.

The scheme will be extended until July 28. It was due
to end on April 28 but the discounts have proved extremely popular, the Shanghai
Tourism Authority said.

(Source: Shanghai Daily)

BIE president: Shanghai World Expo will be a success

Special Report:
Expo 2010 Shanghai
China

PARIS, May 2 (Xinhua) -- "I think nobody has doubt
that the Shanghai World Expo in 2010 will be a success," Jean-Pierre Lafon,
president of the International Exhibition Bureau, said in a recent interview
with Xinhua.

According to Lafon, the Shanghai Expo is of great
significance.

For one thing, the theme of "Better City, Better
Life" is a popular topic people concern most because for the first time in
history, urban population exceeded rural population in 2007, said Lafon, noting
that it is also the first time for China to host a world expo.

For another, Shanghai is a city with mysterious
colors for many people while it is also known around the world as an important
global economic center. "It is a city where China meets with the Occident and a
city that shows China's capacity to incorporate things of diverse nature," the
BIE president said.

It is estimated that the Shanghai Expo will attract
some 70 million visitors, a record in the history of world expo, he added.

Talking about the theme of "city," Lafon said the
extension of urban areas has posed many problems to the world, such as poverty,
pollution, transportation and the mental illness of social contact failure. "It
is of great importance that China will provide the world with solutions to these
problems through the Shanghai Expo." he noted.

Lafon added that the Shanghai World Expo would be an
occasion that great architects, urbanists and sociologists around the world
would come together to tackle the problems brought by urbanization.

He added that the Shanghai Expo would be a challenge
to China under the current global financial crisis, but also an opportunity for
the country to revitalize its economy.

The BIE president said Shanghai World Expo is to open
in a year and he would like to thank China for hosting the event for countries
around the world. "Thanks and good luck," Lafon said.

Chilean president: Shanghai Expo represents most important event in world

Special Report:
Expo 2010 Shanghai
China

SANTIAGO, May 2 (Xinhua) -- Chilean President
Michelle Bachelet has said that Shanghai World Expo 2010 will be the important
event in the world.

"Shanghai World Expo will be the most important event
in China as well as in the world in 2010 and it is of key significance for Chile
to participate in the expo," Bachelet told Xinhua recently.

The remarks were made after Bachelet attended the
launching ceremony of Chile's participation of the Shanghai World Expo 2010 last
Thursday.

"Chile has decided to participate in the expo and
design its own pavilion because we want to convey a clear message to the Chinese
government and the Chinese people that Chile is a reliable and capable partner
of China," she said.

Chile will continue to support China in promoting its
economic development and boosting its relations with Latin American countries as
the two countries share the common aspiration to promote the harmonious and
sustainable development of their economies and improve the living standards of
their peoples, the president added.

The president regarded Chile's participation in the
Shanghai Expo as a new opportunity for boosting bilateral economic and trade
ties.

She also said the event would strengthen Chile's
status as a platform for Chinese investment to enter Latin America.

The Chilean government decided to actively
participate in the event shortly after it received the invitation, she said.

The Chilean pavilion at the Expo, designed by a
Chilean company and constructed by a Chinese one, will shorten the gap between
the two peoples and facilitate the Chinese people's better understanding of
Chile, its product and its people's view on the world and future, said Bachelet.

The president said the friendship between the two
countries can be traced back to long time ago, noting that Chile expected its
best performance at the Shanghai Expo.

The Shanghai World Expo 2010, under the theme "Better
City, Better Life," is expected to build a powerful and lasting pilot example of
sustainable and harmonious urban living.

Shanghai launches virus protection system

Special Report: World Tackles Swine Flu

BEIJING, April 30 (Xinhua) -- Shanghai has adopted emergency measures similar to those used in the 2003 SARS outbreak to guard against the possible arrival of swine flu and to protect residents if the virus does hit the city, according to Thursday's Shanghai Daily.

The emergency plan covers monitoring, prevention, epidemic research, assessment of people in close contact with victims, disinfection and laboratory testing.

Under the plan, 136 hospitals and medical facilities city-wide will check all patients with fevers visiting out-patient departments and ask about their recent contacts.

Patients with temperatures exceeding 38.5 degrees Celsius will be treated at special departments. Anyone with flu-like symptoms must be isolated immediately. Experts from higher-level disease prevention and control centers will be asked to examine suspicious cases.

Anyone suspected or confirmed to be suffering from swine flu will be taken by ambulance to the Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center or the Children's Hospital of Fudan University for isolation and treatment.

"We have set up three groups to monitor and streamline the prevention and control of swine flu, and all hospital leaders and experts are on standby day and night," Wang Yi, vice president of Fudan's Children's Hospital, was quoted by the local news*** as saying.

"Swine flu training for doctors and nurses has been carried out. Medicine, masks and medical equipment are ready."

Meanwhile, other authorities are trying to keep the flu from getting into the city in the first place. Special surveillance measures have been implemented at the Pudong International Airport to check passengers coming in from areas reporting cases of swine flu, especially Mexico, the country hardest hit by the disease.

Any passenger whose temperature is higher than 37.5 degrees Celsius will be sent to a hospital from the parking apron, while all others will proceed through customs.

Travelers from the United States will walk through a special passage where thermal scanners will check their temperatures. The list of suspect passengers may be expanded soon to other countries where swine flu has been reported.

The swine flu scare has caused some tourists to cancel trips to the United States and Europe, local travel agencies said. Shanghai CYTS Tours said several clients asked to break their trip contracts and would not have to pay a penalty.

Shanghai International Travel Service Co., Ltd. said it will consider postponing or canceling U.S. tour groups if the flu situation worsens.