Shanghai World Expo 2010 Pavilion PHOTOS: See The 25 Best

All eyes will be on Shanghai on May 1 as the glistening Chinese metropolis plays host to the 2010 World Expo.

Organizers expect more than 70 million visitors to visit the Expo over the course of six months, whose theme is "Better City, Better Life."

The grand plan for the Expo is impressive. More than 190 countries and more than 50 international organizations are currently registered to take part, with 100 world leaders expected.

"I believe the Shanghai World Expo will be successful, spectacular and unforgettable," said Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.

Over 100 pavilions have been created, ranging from the UK's bizarre hedgehog-like structure to Mexico's sea of kites.

Check out 25 of the best.

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German Pavilion

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The Best Pavilion

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"Most Chinese don't have a chance to go abroad," Wu Jianmin, a former ambassador to France who promoted China's bid for the 2010 expo, told Time. "But with the Shanghai expo, they have a chance to see how the world has developed."

Taking place in 2 sq. miles of former dockland just south of Shanghai's downtown, China's government has spent up to $58 billion sprucing up the city for its new visitors - improving the subway and adding a new terminal to the airport.

Will the Expo be a success? After a "soft" opening in late April, some visitors expressed disappointment and concern.

"Do we really have the ability to host half a million people?" Gao Yiming asked NPR. "I'm still a bit worried."

Comments

[taing sovila]

11:03 AM on 06/03/2010

The World Expo is an event where countries showcase their aspirations and the theme this year is “Better City, Better Life”.I think Architecture should incorporate the local culture, but it should not be totally stuck into it. Innovation is essential for creating memorable buildings. Amazing.....

[Roy Tang]

03:56 AM on 05/31/2010

I am trying to post comment via www.huffingtonpost.com

[Bkk Ho]

04:35 AM on 05/29/2010

I like this very much

[mareseeoats]

10:18 PM on 05/24/2010

WHERE DID THE ONEY COME FROM TO BUILD THIS?

[Palaver]

08:37 PM on 05/15/2010

Did Greece run out of money? Looks like a billboard.

[William Murray]

08:07 AM on 05/13/2010

To sum it up... It looks like a piece of s...

[ontariogirl]

10:31 AM on 05/12/2010

Well at least our pavilion is impressive. The one we had for the Olympics was pretty fugly.

[CologneCitizen]

01:20 AM on 05/12/2010

The German one is plain ugly and the American one looks like a secret place for interrogation and waterboarding.

[RJPCambridge]

04:28 PM on 05/13/2010

Or you are just being harsh --

[Steamboater]

09:23 AM on 05/08/2010

Why is the US building so badly designed? Acually, it's not badly designed at all if you take into consideration what it's supposed to represent. Think about the healthcare fiasco and no public option. Think about two wars we're still involved because of false fears of attacks from the nations we're at war in and occupy, nations who never declared war on us, so our building is pretty definitive of America 2010. It's bland, without courage and not bold at all and it refuses to face the future and learn from the past, but is dependent on past lies and deceit and past perceived glories. It's a simple design for simple minds and stuck in a mindset that's about as gone with the wind as Norman Rockwell. No shape and no real form. Either that part of the front is sticking out like a turtle's head that withdraws when strangers come near or it's another kind of 'head' and in either case, we're f*cked'.

[RJPCambridge]

04:29 PM on 05/13/2010

We as Americans are LUCKY to even be represented at all.

THE GOP in the 80's passed a law and Reagan signed it --- makes it illegal for the government to help fund World Expo buildings or fairs.

So we have to rely on donations and corporations.

[Steamboater]

08:20 AM on 05/08/2010

Russia: Surprise surprise. Russians came up roses with this one. Excellent!
Australia: Guess they made it so big so eveyone can get into this sauna at the same time.
Canada: Super design.
Taiwan: Who wouldda thunk it? Noah's alive and well and living in Taiwan.
Singapore: A player needs an awfully big head to wear that helmut on the ice.
Thailand: Too literal. No surprises. Why go to China when you can see the real thing in Bangkok?
Poland: Ahhhh! I knew the Poles would come up with the best of the lot. Even their movie posters show a terrific way with design. This building is superbly done. Immediately captures your interest.
Finland: I need to book passage on that cruise ship.
South Korea: Another very good design but more suited to Mexico's native pyramids.
Brasil: Green for the Amazon and the green forests that make up so much of Brasil. Good idea but can't see the entire building.
Turkey: Think pink! No, don't think pink at all. Just think of the this very well-designed building in another color. The drag queen who designed this must be a hoot.
The Czech Republic: I just wanna know who was stood up against those walls and excecuted.
Chile: As about as inviting as a gestapo headquarters.Good lines but too stark and cold.
China: What else is new? There's better kitch in your average Chinatown USA.

[Steamboater]

08:17 AM on 05/08/2010

Everyone has their own take on this so here's mine.

Germany: Looks like a giant satellite crash-landed in Shanghai
Japan: All that building needs is a bif smiley face
Saudi Arabia: Tacky. It's got everything but Lawrence of Arabia in a white robe and a couple of camels spitting down on passerbys.
France: Heads are gonna roll. This is new Bastille.
Switzerland: This one would ahve worked if it didn't have that Alp on the roof.
Spain: Would have liked to see the entire building because the building speaks of the spanish hills and earthiness o Spain.
USA: Makes me as curious to enter that building as my dentist's building does. No imagination in this one.
Romania: Could do without the B&W slash in the middle of the thing. MGM did it better with The Emerald City.
Britain: Classy, modern, imaginative and looks like a beefeater's hat. Like this one.
Iceland: Brrrr! No volcano spewing lava from the roof?
Continued ...

[buble]

11:50 PM on 05/09/2010

Germany: i have the same thought
French: basket of baguette up-side-down!
USA: conservative! stuck!
Finnish: boring

[Steamboater]

07:34 AM on 05/08/2010

I hope China is giving out free oxygen masks.

[KataVideo]

08:44 PM on 05/07/2010

Ugh.. the American one looks like a corporate h-q.. well, that should have been expected.

[bookon]

11:30 PM on 05/05/2010

The American one is in fact pretty nice, but this picture is awful.

http://www.usapavilion2010.com/usapavilion2010/paviliondesign.html

[MarkInEugene]

08:04 PM on 05/05/2010

All of them were awesome except for one...the US pavillion looked like a warehouse in Long Beach.

Fire the architect!

[Cuthach]

07:44 PM on 05/08/2010

You forgot the Japanese one.

It looked like a deflating prop from some horrid sci fi film.