A new look for the city

Two years after the close of the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, the 5.28-square-kilometer site is very different from the hustling and bustling space that served over the six months of the Expo. Apart from the Mercedes-Benz Arena, originally the Expo Performance Center, which still hosts concerts, sports and other events, and the China Art Palace, originally the China Pavilion, which showcases the works of leading artists and continues to attract visitors, elsewhere around the former Expo site in Pudong New Area, only the sounds of earth moving machines can be occasionally heard while most of the ground is left tranquil, covered by demolition debris or weeds.

According to the original Expo plan, all the national pavilions except the China Pavilion, some of them costing 100 million yuan ($16 million) to build, were to be demolished after the event. But after Expo, six pavilions got to stay - the Saudi Arabia Pavilion, the Italy Pavilion, the Luxemburg Pavilion, the Spain Pavilion, the Russia Pavilion and the France Pavilion. They have all been donated as gifts to Shanghai by the various countries.

The half-moon shaped Saudi Arabia Pavilion, now referred to as "moon boat," was the first to reopen in September last year. After renovations, the Italy Pavilion, renamed the Shanghai Italian Center, reopened in April this year. But Zhang Cangang, the deputy director of the Pudong Expo Site Management Office, has been quoted by media as saying that: "The reopening of these pavilions is actually temporary. These structures will still be dismantled if it's necessary to make way for development plans in the region."

The largest joint pavilion at the Shanghai Expo, the Africa Joint Pavilion, will, however, be kept permanently by the Huangpu River - it has been renovated and is now the Shanghai Expo Mart. The project was completed in November last year. With an indoor exhibition area of 21,000 square meters and outdoor sites covering 3,600 square meters, the mart can host exhibitions, cultural performances, conferences and forums.

According to current plans, Zone B of the Expo site, which used to host the national pavilions of Southeast Asian and Oceania countries, pavilions for international organizations and theme pavilions, will be turned into a headquarters center for central government enterprises. The planned area is 18.72 hectares and so far 13 central government enterprises have finalized plans to move in.