Beauty and the pavilion
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| Having photos taken with visitors is just one of many duties performed by attractive guides in China's provincial pavilions. |
Beauty queens from all over China are serving as guides at various pavilions, Wang Hongyi reports.
There is a popular saying that complements the renowned beauty of Chongqing women: "A man will not realize he has married too early until he visits Chongqing." However, if you don't have time to visit Chongqing, you still have a chance to check the veracity of this saying by visiting the Chongqing Pavilion in the Expo Garden.
Unlike the straightforward northern women or the sweet-tempered southern belle, Chongqing women are famous for their looks and fiery nature, created by the distinct mountainous environment and rainy weather of the country's southwest.
Twenty-year-old Chongqing girl Nie Aixin stands out as proof. Last month, she was crowned Miss Chongqing after a selection process that included sashaying across the stage, answering challenging questions and performing dances and songs.
The 1.73-meter-tall, 50-kilogram beauty is a student from Chongqing's Southwest University. During the beauty contest, her harmonious and graceful dance movements, thanks to years of dance lessons, carried the audiences with her.
Nie, along with other girls from the pageant are now serving as guides in the Chongqing Pavilion.
Compared with glamorous runway shows and bikini contests, work at the Expo Garden is not easy - sometimes even boring.
A beautiful smile is essential to the young girls' duties at the pavilion. But what kind of smile is the most beautiful? Nie said this is the question she thinks about every day.
"Just show eight teeth, and slightly turn up the corners of the mouth. No more, no less," said Nie, explaining her perfect smile.
Every day before she enters the Chongqing Pavilion, Nie will pat her cheeks lightly. "It can help relax the muscles of cheeks and maintain a beautiful smile for the whole day," she said.
"A smile can bring us closer to each other. At the end of the day, I find my cheeks ache because I have been smiling for so long," Nie said, adding that her legs also hurt at the end of each day from standing.
"We have to stand at least eight hours every day. It is really a painful task, especially during the first few days I worked here."
Nie said this was the first time she has had to stand for such long periods.
"We have 30-minute break time after standing one hour. But the time always passes so quickly."
As Miss Chongqing, Nie is always the center of attention.
"Every day there are thousands of visitors taking pictures with us. Perhaps years later, when those visitors take out the photos of their Expo trip, they will say: 'Hey, look! This pretty girl is from Chongqing, China.' And our wonderful city will once again be remembered," she said.
"Many visitors like to pose with me for a picture and some asked my name and want my mobile phone number," she said. At first, the young women gave out her number, but she soon learned to politely refuse.
"After all, our appearance represents our hometown. I hope I can bring the best side of Chongqing to the world."
Nie said she is optimistic about her work. "I don't let the pressure get me down and just keep smiling."
Pretty pavilion girls form much of the scenery at the Expo Garden. At the Heilongjiang Pavilion, visitors will meet more beauty.
" Every visitor who comes into our pavilion praises our girls for their beauty," said Li Deshan, director of the Heilongjiang Pavilion. "They are the pride of Heilongjiang."
The girls in Heilongjiang Pavilion were chosen after rounds of rigorous selection. And they work hard, putting in 10 hours a day at the pavilion.
Heilongjiang Pavilion receives about 20,000 visitors every day, which means a lot of work for the staff.
"The work here is hard. But we're happy that people always praised us for our charm and beauty," said Bing Lin, a guide in the pavilion and student at the Harbin Civil Aviation School.
Wearing a navy blue uniform and make-up, it is difficult to guess she is only 15 years old - the youngest among the girls in Heilongjiang Pavilion.
"I'm very glad I got the job, but the work is much tougher than I thought it would be," she said.
"There are many visitors wanting to check out the Heilongjiang Pavilion and it is usually a long wait to get inside. "Some impatient visitors get angry with us," Bing said. "But we always patiently explain the situation to them.
"But we represent the image of Heilongjiang, so all these hassles can be forgotten," she said.
Zhai Zhaokun, another pretty guide at the Heilongjiang Pavilion, said: "What impressed me most is that many Shanghai people with memories of my province visit the Heilongjiang Pavilion."
During the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), many "educated urban youth" were sent to work in the countryside.
"They spent the prime of their lives in Heilongjiang and have fond feelings for the area. They said Heilongjiang was their second home," Zhai said. "Hearing their words, I feel very proud that I was born in the place."
Before the start of Expo 2010 Shanghai, nearly 300 attractive young women, most of them college students, were selected from over 10,000 contestants in a nationwide competition. More than 30 million people voted for the winners over the Internet.
The winners, who became Expo guides, had two months intensive training in etiquette and deportment, among other things.
"Through the comprehensive training course, these young women are better prepared in knowledge, etiquette and ability. This helps them properly and fully represent China," said Sun Weimin, an official with the Shanghai World Expo Coordination Bureau.
"The unique features of the local environment always give special characteristics to its inhabitants. And women from different areas will undoubtedly have unique cultural and environment backgrounds," said Chen Jun, a visitor from Shaanxi province, who is also an amateur photographer.
Chen said he has taken many photos at the Expo Garden, especially of pretty ladies from different provinces, who are guides in the various pavilions.
"Behind every woman's smiling face there is a different cultural story. It also reflects different features from across the country," he said.
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