Feature: When Mickey meets Hong Kong
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-09-12 21:11

Derrick Johnson, from California of the United States where hosts the world's first Disneyland, has been in all the four old Disneyland parks in the world, yet he did not miss the new one in Hong Kong, which opened on Monday.

"I am a super fan of Disney," he told Xinhua, showcasing the over 100 pieces of souvenir badges stuck to his waistcoat.

Derrick planned to spend three days at a hotel in the resort and add more badges from Hong Kong to his collection.

Thousands of visitors and reporters from around the world swarmed into the park on the opening day.

The first adventure for the opening day is the "joyful 100- meter dash", during which visitors elbowed their way out in a bid to don the first place into the park in the wake of a tiring waiting period of two to three hours.

Among the first batch of visitors, many were from Japan, Australia and the Middle East.

Yuka Aida, a Japanese housewife, told Xinhua that "though I've visited the Tokyo Disneyland for several times, I want to witness the opening day of the Hong Kong version."

"Besides, I could take the chance to dive in the world famous shopping hub," Yuka chuckled cheerfully.

A tour group from Guangzhou, the biggest city in south China, " rocked" the Hong Kong Disneyland with its around 1,800-strong grouping.

Chen, however, was not among the Guangzhou regiment.

The Shanghai businessman, insisting on disclosure of merely the surname, brought his wife and a 3-year-old son to the park under the mainland newly-opened individual tourism scheme.

Chen said the Hong Kong Disneyland is attractive to both adult and child.

Visitors were seen flocking into the Disneyland shop of the Chow Sang Sang Jewelry Co. Ltd.

A public relation official of the renowned local jewelry giant, insisting on her anonymity, told Xinhua that the turnover of the Disneyland shop has been "more satisfactory than expected" since the park kicked off its rehearsal period on August 16.

The theme park, worth 3.5 billion US dollars, is a joint venture between the Walt Disney Co. and the Hong Kong government.

It employs 5,000 staff members, or "cast members" as Disney likes to call them. Analysts predict that it will attract 5.6 million visitors in its opening year, with one-third each from Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and other Asia-Pacific regions.

Close

HK disneyland opens Typhoon batters Zhejiang Hu arrives in Mexico for state visit

Today's Top News     Top China News
Disney opens its first theme park in China         Typhoon kills at least 14 in east China         President Hu arrives in Mexico for visit         Shenzhou VI flight 'after October holiday'         Katrina pushes gas price to All-time high         Natural disaster toll no longer state secret	Oil prices eating away at Chinese economy       Britain opens Chinese workers drowning case       EU warns of new China textile 'disaster'       India and China to reopen direct trade links       President Hu arrives in Mexico for visit       Shenzhou VI flight 'after October holiday'