Like most communist countries, China has a central authoritarian figure. This big brother is plastered on billboards and modeled in plastic statues all over the city. We never escaped his gaze, his wild pompadour, and his insane smile. He is the omnipresent Haibao and he's watching you.
Haibao is the mascot of Shanghai's World's Fair. (aka the Expo)
This shot is of the fabulous pavilion constructed for the upcoming Expo. So goes the story, they are also working on fifteen hundred roads, digging new subway lines, and constructing thousands of buildings, all in time for the Expo. Everyone estimates that millions of tourist will flock to this city for this big event. Can anyone tell us what happens at a world's fair nowadays?
In this Slideshow: All Haibao, all the time.
We are currently in Yangshuo. We'll post of few blogposts about our adventures when we get back the states. Look forward to seeing the next viral cat video: this one will blow away the Cat-On-The-Roomba and the Hamster-On-A-Piano videos. We love your comments!
oh my god that thing is driving me nuts!
allen said...
August 18, 2009 at 6:14 PM
It's Hai Bao, it'll be more famous than the Olympic Games mascots, and Shanghai is spending more money than Beijing on city beautification. At the Expo, each country builds its own pavilion showcasing the best features of that nation. We already have our tickets for next year.
Ali said...
August 18, 2009 at 7:04 PM
Haibo refrigerator magnets for all of us!! Oh, no!!!!!
beth said...
August 19, 2009 at 5:34 AM
Beth, buy a stainless steel refrigerator. magnets don't stick...no worries. expensive solution? yes. but no Haibo!
arleen said...
August 19, 2009 at 7:33 AM
Dear Seth & Liz - thank you SO MUCH for producing this fabulous blog. Great commentary, photos & video. I feel like I've been to China too. Safe travels, love from Sherry
Sherry said...
August 20, 2009 at 7:34 PM
Does Haibo always have the same posture with his hand on his hip and another by his ear? Does this reflect the inflexibility? In quiring pandas want to know
andy said...
August 22, 2009 at 3:10 PM
Well Panda, Haibao seems to have 3 official postures: hand on hip & waving, leg outstretched & waving, and caught in a carefree mid-prance. There are some unauthorized postures out there as well.
It took us about 6 weeks but eventually Haibao burrowed his way into our hearts. (Not so much so that we bought any merchandise of course.)
Seth
Seth and Liz said...
August 23, 2009 at 1:43 AM
I infer two contradictory things from the comment of Seth and Liz. The first is that they are now out of China because they can comment on their blog. There was some indication that they were prevented from doing so while in China. However, noting the time of their post, it seems they are still in Asia because Seth has never been awake at 5:43 a.m. without being under duress. Maybe, they're being held hostage in Ann Arbor. Maybe, the usual post-Asia jet lag.
andy said...
August 23, 2009 at 3:31 PM
Great blog as for me. I'd like to read something more concerning this theme. Thnx for giving this info.
Sexy Lady
Asian escort
Anonymous said...
December 19, 2009 at 8:51 AM