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Recent Visitors
A brainwave from Belgium
2009. 11 August
by Yang Jian
(shanghaidaily.com)
To win a diamond, eat chocolate for free and play with Smurfs, blue elf-like creatures - the Belgium Pavilion at the World Expo 2010 Shanghai is really worth visiting.
The pavilion will also be home for the European Union's Expo debut outside its member countries.
Visitors will enjoy the "bon vivant" lifestyle of the continent. A mini chocolate factory will make authentic Belgian chocolate free for visitors.
In addition, the renowned "diamond kingdom" will give away 26 diamonds.
The pavilion last week announced that the Smurfs would be its mascots. The Belgian animated creatures, created by Peyo in 1958, swept China in the 1980s with the Hanna-Barbera cartoon series and won countless fans.
People dressed as Smurfs will welcome visitors while virtual Smurfs will present the pavilion's multimedia shows.
Looking at it from a distance, the 5,000-square-meter Belgium Pavilion would seem to be an ordinary rectangle, no different to the simplest of the rented pavilions at the Expo. But moving closer, visitors will encounter a huge shape with changing, swirling colors. It will be like a giant and weird brain cell, which is the core concept for the pavilion.
Visitors will enter the pavilion via a "vein" walk to the center of the semi-transparent cell, where they can look over the inside of the entire pavilion. The vein and the cell will be made from a new fiber-like material. Visitors will feel as if they are walking on something soft, just as if they were walking through a vein.
The design of the pavilion is meant to reflect the basic characteristics of Belgian people, who are formal and low-profile from the outside - like the rectangle - but full of vitality and innovation inside, said Christine Conix, chief designer for the pavilion.
Chocolates
People can get to all the main areas inside the two-story pavilion by walking through the veins.
Belgium is most famous for diamonds and chocolates. The country will promote both at the 2010 event and will be giving both away.
Each week of the Expo, Belgian organizers will give a free diamond to a visitor, Delcroix said.
For a chance to win, visitors will have to text the correct answers to questions about Belgium, such as who is the king or the number of regions in the country. The diamond winners will be chosen by a weekly lottery.
The chocolate factory will show visitors exactly how Belgian chocolate is made. The chocolates from the factory will be shaped like Beijing's Great Wall or Shanghai's Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
A diamond factory will show visitors how an unremarkable stone can be cut into a glittering diamond.
Diamond displays will be held during the Expo - 50 of the world's top designers, including 17 from China, will exhibit their work. Visitors will be able to buy the jewelry, with all profits going to charity.
The European Union will have a 1,000-square-meter exhibition area on the first floor.
The organization is still working on its exhibition plan, but Michael Pulch, deputy head of delegation of the European Commission in China, said: "People from all walks of life will find intriguing things here."
The EU and all its member nations will attend the Shanghai event and will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the issuing of the Schuman Declaration, the first step toward a united Europe, in the pavilion.
The pavilion is costing 10 million euros (US$13.98 million) with Belgium covering more than 75 percent of the cost. Highlight: Answer simple questions about Belgium to have the chance to win one of 26 diamonds during the Expo period.Theme: Intelligent Europe What to see?
The Belgium Pavilion will have a giant and weird brain cell with changing, swirling colors as its centerpiece.
The European Union will make its Expo debut outside its member countries in the pavilion.
The Smurfs will welcome visitors as the pavilion's mascots. People dressed as Smurfs will welcome visitors while virtual Smurfs will present the pavilion's multimedia shows.
Diamond displays will be held during the Expo - 50 of the world's top designers, including 17 from China, will exhibit their work. Visitors will be able to buy the jewelry with all profits going to charity.
What to eat?
Belgian chocolate will be given free to visitors. Chocolates will be shaped like the Great Wall or the Shanghai Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
Belgian wines, including world famous white wines produced from Chardonnay grapes, will be provided in the pavilion.
Want to have fun?
Visitors will enter the pavilion via a "vein" walk to the center of the semi-transparent cell, where they can look over the inside of the entire pavilion. The vein and the cell will be made from a new fiber-like material. Visitors will feel as if they are walking on something soft, just as if they were walking through a vein.
A diamond factory will show visitors how an unremarkable stone can be cut into a glittering diamond.
A mini chocolate factory will show visitors exactly how Belgian chocolate is made.5,000 sq m
The European Union will have a 1,000-square-meter exhibition area on the first floor of the Belgium Pavilion, which occupies 5,000 square meters.10 million euros
The pavilion is costing 10 million euros with Belgium covering more than 70 percent of the cost.