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I recently rented a Chinese film called WORLD. It follows several weeks in the lives of a group of young Chinese who work at a Beijing theme park that features one-third scale models of various sites found in city's around the world: Paris and the Eiffel Tower, lower Manhattan including the World Trade Centre; the leaning Tower of Pisa...

I couldn't find a reference for such a park in any of my Beijing travel guides, but these may be two years out of date by now, given how fast things are changing there. Nor do I recall any hint of such a place in any of the tourist brochures I picked up at my hotel when in the city in April, though I don't think this would be a particularly interesting place to visit for European or N/S American visitors. It was definitely a theme park aimed at locals and Chinese visitors to the capital.

Is there such a theme park, or was it "created" for the movie?

moondog

That movie sounds interesting. I will have to check it out.

Beijing doesn't have any theme parks at the moment, tmk. (There is a really crappy amusement park to the west and a water park near the airport, but that's about it.) There is a park similar to what you describe in Shenzhen.

travelinmanS

I remember hearing about this when I went to school in Beijing many years ago.

I've never been but the last time I took the train from Beijing to Tianjin (even more annoying than taking the Guangshen train by the way) About 10 minutes after leaving the Beijing Main Station we passed a park on the lefthand side of the train that had all these features (mini landmarks). You also pass the crappy amusement park Moondog mentions...the only park where they "rest" the roller coaster after each run!

You might want to head off in that general direction and you'll come upon it.

anacapamalibu

Have to check this out next time..seems kind of interesting.

Located in the Fengtai District of Beijing 16 kilometres from the city proper, the World Park in Beijing features 106 of the most famous sites from 14 countries and regions the world over.



The park, measuring 46.7 hectares (116.75 acres) in size, consits of two parts: The scenic area in miniature displayed according to the position of its country on the map, and a shopping, dining and enteratinment area. The enteratinment area is situated in an international folkloric village characterized by buildings in the American and European styles. The tourist can take an electric train and a motorboat through the park to simulate a trip around the world.





The park includes most of the recognized spots of interest on the globe. Among these are the Wooden Pagoda in China's Ying County, the world's oldest and best-preserved wooden pagoda, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Pharoas of Alexandria and Eiffet Tower in Paris. China's Qingyingjing Park, Japan's Katzura Imperial Villa, and an old-style garden of the US are grouped together to represent the splendor of the world's different gardening styles and in recognition of the many distinctive forms which landscape gardening has taken in China.





Great efforts were made to build the structures out of the same materials as the real ones, and marble and granite surfaces, together with copper and gilded sculptures help produce a realistic effect. For instance, the Pyramid is made of 200,000 white marble bricks, each as large as a bar of soap. Red square is paved with over 5 million red bricks smaller than mahjong tiles.





Lawns in the park are dotted with 100 well-known sculptures, among them the Statue of Liberty, the Little Mermaid from Copenhagan, Michelangelo's David and the Venus de Milo.



The park also has a fountain operated by laser beams, a plant maze and a fairyland in which children and adults alike can enjoy themselves. Regular international parades of folklore are planned to provide the tourist with a chance to view folk customs from different countries

anacapamalibu

This is cheaper than flying to NY, plus you don't have to get a US visa!
[URL=http://www.eece.unm.edu/~jyy/pictures/family/WorldPark.JPG]

mario33

.....but you dont get to experience the "shoe parade"

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Thanks for tracking this information down, anacapamalibu. This would be the location for the film. It was interesting in the day to day life of young people who have come from the countryside or other smaller cities to find some form of better life in Beijing. There was a scene at the main Beijing RR station too, but most of the activities -- other than at the dorms of the women -- were behind the scenes at the Park. Curiously it always appeared there were more staff than visitors at the attractions.

anacapamalibu

I asked a few people who have lived in Beijing and no one had visited this park. Maybe its very new. I would probably bet there are more staff then visitors. I went to this supermall , with super expensive stores, in Beijing and there were more sales clerks than customers. The parking lot was pretty much empty.. I guess they are preparing for the forth coming wealth which is no doubt on the horizon.