Little Mermaid, time to say goodbye to China
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Bramsen also named two other factors which he thought have contributed to the Danish Pavilion's success. One is the clear-cut message of a good city life the Danish Pavilion offers, which is very much in tune with the overall theme of the Expo-- "Better City, Better Life."
"Back in 1800, two percent of the world's population lived in cities. Today, that number is 55 percent. It is important that we make life in cities workable and that people get a good life there," Bramsen said.
The other Danish pavilion, that of the Danish city Odense, exhibited an interesting approach to the serious subject of improving city life -- using bicycles to achieve a better city environment.
"Odense is the birth place of the poet Hans Christian Andersen, and with our presence at the Expo 2010, we wish to show a modern fairy tale of a city, where biking is part of the city's mobility policy," Helle Thylkjaer Henriksen, coordinator general for the Odense Pavilion, said.
The Danish Pavilion is also aesthetically unique. The whole pavilion, designed by the architectural firm BIG, is built around an artificial pond, the temporary home of the Little Mermaid.
While other countries might have more spectacular pavilions, the Danish Pavilion is rather approachable, just like the country's people.
Bramsen said that the Expo has been quite an experience.
"I have a lot of fond memories of this Expo. It has been great working here with this many people, Danes, Chinese and other people from across the world," Bramsen said.
"As the Expo draws to an end, you can see how much friendship has been developed between the people at the Expo ... I must say that we have a fantastic Expo. The administration has done a good job," Bramsen said.
The cross-cultural experience is what Henriksen likes the most.
"At the Odense Pavilion I met a young girl who studies Hans Christian Andersen and knows a lot of the city of Odense, although she has never been there. It was a nice way of experiencing how two worlds meet and move closer together because of the Expo," Henriksen said.
As in Andersen's fairy tale, the Little Mermaid cannot speak about her adventures in a place far from home or even say goodbye to it. In late November, she will go home to keep a watchful eye on Copenhagen harbor from her little perch.
But without doubt, her first journey abroad will be fondly remembered by many.
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