2016年CRI Visitors Enjoy Mixture of Cultures at Shanghai Disney

 

According to many tourists who got the chance to visit the park before its official opening on Jun 16th, they were excited to encounter Chinese elements.

Famous Disney icon¹ Donald Duck is practicing with his TaiChi master, and adding his own style. Visitors say it was amusing to see the character's new moves.

"This is the first time I have seen it. Very funny."

"It's interesting. I like it."

"It is very innovative²."

The performance is just part of Disney's Chinese immersion³ strategy. The creators of the fantasy world explain that they wanted Chinese guests to have a sense of familiarity as they interact with the characters.

Xu Chang is the assistant producer of Shanghai Disney:

"We want to have performances that Chinese audiences are familiar with, as well as delivering the act in a very Disney style."

The same thoughtfulness can be seen in the 'twelve friends,' 12 Disney characters selected to match the Chinese zodiac animals, and the peony flowers, a symbol of Chinese culture, decorating the park's castle.

A set of stamps will be officially released on June 16, the day Shanghai Disney opens to visitors. The set of two includes the "Mickey and Minnie" stamp and "Enchanted⁴ Storybook Castle" stamp.

Their special design fully⁵ embodies⁶ Chinese elements, such as the Mandarin⁷ collar and peony patterns on the clothes of Mickey and Minnie, as well as the peony magnolia flowers, representing the city of Shanghai, against the background of the castle.

President of Shanghai Shendi Group Fan Xiping says Shanghai Disney is an important symbol of Sino-U.S. cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

"The permission of China's post authorities to issue the Disney-themed stamps fully demonstrated their approval of this project and appreciation⁸ for the value of cooperation and exchanges carried by such cute souvenirs as stamps."

Gu Zhengwei, director of the commodities department at the Shanghai Disney Resort, introduces the special design for the souvenirs.

"We have products like this retro-styled Shanghai Minnie Mouse. It contains Chinese elements like the jade⁹ on its wrist and its Chinese cheongsam."

As the sun sets over the resort in the evening, visitors have been filled with a new set of feelings as buildings festooned with brilliant lights and cartoon characters transform the resort into a fairy tale castle.

Right after the firework show, tourists say their visit had been far more interesting than they had imagined.

"Though there are so many visitors here, I'm still happy. The staff are everywhere and always smile when being asked questions and directing the way. I felt especially happy during the parade. Those classic characters from Disney that I know all showed up. All the actors were active and smiled all the way."

For CRI, I am Chi Huiguang reporting in Shanghai.

1 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

2 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

3 immersion   

n.沉浸；专心

参考例句：

• The dirt on the bottom of the bath didn't encourage total immersion.浴缸底有污垢，不宜全身浸泡于其中。
• The wood had become swollen from prolonged immersion.因长时间浸泡，木头发胀了。

4 enchanted   

adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• She was enchanted by the flowers you sent her. 她非常喜欢你送给她的花。
• He was enchanted by the idea. 他为这个主意而欣喜若狂。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 embodies   

v.表现( embody的第三人称单数 )；象征；包括；包含

参考例句：

• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This document embodies the concern of the government for the deformity. 这个文件体现了政府对残疾人的关怀。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 Mandarin   

n.中国官话，国语，满清官吏；adj.华丽辞藻的

参考例句：

• Just over one billion people speak Mandarin as their native tongue.大约有十亿以上的人口以华语为母语。
• Mandarin will be the new official language of the European Union.普通话会变成欧盟新的官方语言。

8 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

9 jade   

n.玉石；碧玉；翡翠

参考例句：

• The statue was carved out of jade.这座塑像是玉雕的。
• He presented us with a couple of jade lions.他送给我们一对玉狮子。