World Expo - Shanghai

Thinking of going to the World Expo? Well, do consider the heat and the crowd... especially when the China Golden week in Oct (week long holiday) draws near. One thing for sure, the organizer certainly picked the right location! On average, it has been reported to have 300,000 visitors every day, with majority from host country. Despite the huge premises, the place is packed throughout the day. I got a 3-day pass, and probably managed to cover maybe two-third of the ground, walking 8 hour straight per day.

Standing in line reminded me of the trip to Disneyland, the only different...you can expect everything typically coming from the locals...loud talking, queue jumping, and at one occasion...quarrelling. Well, to be fair...not everyone behaved badly. As you can imagine, long queue and under the afternoon heat, something got to pop. Looking at the bright side of the picture, such "extra" activities did add some spice to otherwise the boring wait.

I'm sure the authority has anticipated minority bad eggs to appear in such event, signs are up in every pavilion and corners, serving as reminder. Great effort! Nevertheless, someone needs to look into the translation. :)



My take on the pavilions in general? It all boiled down to the effort each country put in. In some exhibits, it felt like walking into art gallery, museums, shopping arcade, science discovery center & etc. Don't really feel the social and cultural aspect of the country. My advice, do your homework before making the visit to the Expo, it will certainly save those precious queueing time!

There are couple of outstanding pavilions, and I'm sure they have put huge efforts and resources to showcase their best. Beware, these are also the pavilions with exceptionally long queue, at least 2 to 3 hours in waiting. For some, you can't even get in. Just to highlight a few.....

Surviving the expo means you need to be well prepared and do put on a comfortable pair of shoes. With the heat and crowd, you can get exhausted by noon. One strategy is....if time permits, cover the expo in two days. Go in the morning, spend the day on only the selected attractions. On the second day, start in the afternoon, and reserve enough energy to last you till evening.



When night falls, the experience is even better! With the spectacular lighting, cooler temperature and lesser crowd, you can save a significant amount visiting more pavilions.

How to get there?
Take the subway, this is the most efficient and cost-effective way to travel in Shanghai. Take the train to Madang station (apparently the least crowded), connect to the expo line. Have fun!