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Leisure weekend life in Urumqi, hope overwelming fear

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-07-20 11:15

URUMQI: Doctor Wang Hongbo made his rounds in the hospital on Sunday, when he should have been enjoying his first day off over the past two weeks.

He chose to remain busy after his work at the hospital this day -- helping his wife do laundry, doing some grocery shopping at a nearby supermarket and fixing the fluorescent lamp at home that he had been too busy to fix.

After the July 5 riot in Urumqi which has left 197 people dead and more than 1,600 injured, Wang, along with his colleagues with Xinjiang Tumor Hospital, has been busy saving lives at the operating tables.

On Sunday, he drove his wife and son to a restaurant in the violence-torn city, where he said he wanted to retrieve over diner the long-lost family gathering.

"I don't mind the hustles and bustles in the restaurant at all," he said. "Instead, I felt the familiar sense of security came back."

Also crowded was the People's Cinema in the downtown.

"Without an access to the internet after the riot, I chose to watch films with my family to kill my boredom," said Kamailong, a student at Xinjiang Normal University, who was queuing for a ticket for blockbuster Ice Age 3.

A busy ticket seller with the cinema told Xinhua that revenue had returned to almost as much as what it was before the incident.

"Tickets of the newly released films, such as Harry Porter and The Half-Blood Prince and Ice Age 3, have been selling like hot cakes," she said.

Full Coverage:  Riot in Urumqi Related readings:  Beauty contest shakes off shadow of riot in Urumqi  Facts show riot 'far beyond ordinary violent matter'  Official: 12 mobsters in Urumqi riot shot dead  Mosques reopen to prayers in riot-hit Urumqi  Riot hurts Xinjiang economy

"I do feel joyfully relieved with the lines coming back," she added.

Bai Xue, a senior high school graduate, did not go to the cinema. Instead, she took a bus and came to Hami Plaza in downtown Urumqi to take part in the first round competition of Miss Tourism, accompanied by her mother.

Bai was not fully prepared as she had stayed indoor for a whole week after the bloody violence swept Urumqi on July 5. She had just resumed training for two days before the contest was finally unveiled.

Cheng Jianrong, a regional executive chairman for the beauty competition, said that full efforts were needed to promote Xinjiang's cultural and economic industries and  the competition was an important part.

Aijamal was preparing for her wedding scheduled for August 2. She went to a wedding dress building on Shengli Street in Urumqi to choose a Uygur-styled gown with her fiance.

Gyl, the owner of an adjacent shop, had not received any customer in the past two weeks, but she kept the door open hoping to attract possible buyers. Half of the twenty-plus shops in the building opened on Sunday.

"It would be a peak season for weddings in the past," said Gyl, "as many Uygur customers hoped to get married before the arrival of Ramadan, and wedding gown shops would be full of people booking their seats for make-ups or renting clothes. But the July 5 riot dealt a deadly blow to our business as most of the reserved marriages had been postponed or canceled."

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