旅游英語景點介紹—東方明珠電視塔 The Oriental Pearl TV Tower

　　【簡介】東方明珠廣播電視塔，位于上海市浦東陸家嘴的未來主義建筑，常簡稱其為東方明珠。東方明珠由當時華東建筑設計研究院設計，1991年動工，1994年落成，總高468米。自落成以后便成為上海天際線的組成部分之一，是上海的地標性建筑，同時也是中國國家5A級旅游景區(qū)。電視塔主要分下、中、上和太空艙總計4個部分。下球球體直徑達到50米，位于100米的高空，主要為觀光平臺，還設置有一部室內(nèi)過山車。中球體總計五個，直徑為12米，內(nèi)部主要為空中客房，分布于118米至210米的高空。上球體，位于250余米的高空，球體內(nèi)主要安裝了廣播電視發(fā)射機房。另外，263米處再設置一觀光層，267米處為著名的東方明珠旋轉(zhuǎn)餐廳，轉(zhuǎn)速為每小時一圈，可容納1600人。自2009年5月1日起，在259米高空的球體內(nèi)，增設一個環(huán)形玻璃觀光通道，稱之為“懸空觀光廊”。整個通道采用鋼結(jié)構，玻璃敷設地面與墻體，游客行走于其中，可以透過地面和外墻俯視黃浦江和陸家嘴地區(qū)的風貌。最上部為太空艙，由一個直徑為16米的球體，設置有高級觀光層、會議廳和咖啡館。

TOURIST AREA OF THE ORIENTAL PEARL TV TOWER

A brief introduction to Pudong New Area

Pudong New Area is located on the east of the Huangpu River, facing the East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean and bordering the Yangtze Delta. It is at the intersection of Chinese golden coast and golden waterway. It is a triangular area, with a size of 522 square kilometers and a population of more than 1.5 million.

In the early ‘90s, Comrade Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect of China’s reform and open-up policy, expected that there should be in Shanghai “a change every year and a big change every three years”. As a strategic decision, the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee and the State Council declared the opening and development of Pudong on April 18th, 1990. it is another significant step in China’s policy of reform and opening to the outside world. Since then, Shanghai people have gone all out and worked numerous wonders on this promising piece of land. Up till now there have been set up Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone, Jinqiao Export Processing Zone, Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, Zhangjiang Hi-tech Park, Huaxia Culture & Tourism Development Zone, Sunqiao Moodern Agriculture Development Zone, etc. new municipal infrastructure projects, such as an international airport, a deep-water port and infrastructure for an information highway have been or are being carried out. The opening and development of Pudong Area is a brilliant example, which has become an icon of Shanghai’s sweeping advance to the modern cosmopolis and as economic center, trade center and financial center.

Compared with China’s other special economic zones and economic development zones, Pudong New Area has the following characteristics:

1. A free trade zone has been established in the area to promote the free entering and leaving of commodities, and capitals, which make Pudong a “free port”.

2. Foreign banks have been introduced to enliven the area’s banking services as well as related service industries.

3. Means and methods of attracting foreign and domestic investors and tourists are being improved.

4. Pudong boasts rich historical heritage and the abundance of cultural resources.

5. The whole Pudong New Area is taken as a highly-afforested urban area of the state level. It is a blending of leisure, recreation and entertainment, travel, and shopping, and has become an ideal place for international conferences and business tours.

Following its rapid development, the tourism industry of Pudong New Area is making a remarkable progress. Tourism is becoming a new point for economic growth. Besides places of historical interest, a group of new tourist attractions have been added and more tourism projects are under planning and construction. Places of interest in Pudong New Area include:

1. A forest of skyscrapers, including Jin Mao Building, Shanghai Stock Exchange Building, etc. the architects from China, Asia and all over the world are contributing their expertise to this area. More than 300 skyscrapers have sprung up, which makes you feel the beating pulse of the new century.

2. Places of tourism, entertainment and recreation, including the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, the Riverside Promenade, the Central Green, the Century Park, etc. Pudong New Area is where people can relax themselves and enjoy a really good time.

3. Historical sites including the Crane Tower in Chuansha Park, the former residence off Huang yanpei and Zhang Wentian, the Qingciyang Palace, etc. The scenic spots and historical sites embody the character of the seashore. An ancient coastline, a sea wall, castle blocks across the south to the north make people recall the evolution of the seacoast and the heroic people who fought against foreign invaders.

4. Hotels including some world famous ones such as Jin Mao Grand Hyatt, Pudong Holiday Inn, Shanghai International Convention Center Hotel, Shangri-la Hotel, etc. there are now in Pudong New Area more than 30 deluxe hotels, some of which are built by five-star standard. The excellent facilities can let the guests feel cozy and comfortable.

5. Shopper’s Eden: including Shanghai No. 1 Yao-han Nextage Department Store (the biggest in Asia), Pudong Mansion, Zhangyang Commercial Street, Dongfang Commercial Street etc. the comfortable and elegant shopping environment can help you choose freely from the famous brands and exquisite products.

6. Kingdom of delicacies, including New Meilongzhen Restaurant, Peninsula Shark’s Fin Chaozhou Restaurant, East Snack Kingdom, etc. The hotels, restaurants, and snack bars are found all over Pudong New Area, offering Chinese and Western food of different standards.

A Brief Introduction to Lujiazui

The Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone is located in the Lujiazui-Huamu Complex District. This zone is in the heart of Pudong and extends within the Inner Ring Road. This is a comparatively busy section where most of Pudong’s finance, trade, information, services, science and technology, education and cultural institutions and facilities are found.

Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone is full of charm and fascinating grace. There are found in this zone the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, the Jin Mao Building, the beautiful Central Green, the Riverside Promenade, the Century Park, and the Oriental Pearl Wharf.

The Oriental Pearl TV Tower

The Oriental Pearl TV Tower is unquestionably an icon of Pudong’s renaissance. Looming through the mist, like a reproduction of a classical Chinese ink painting of landscape, stands Shanghai’s Oriental Pearl TV Tower. Its soaring height of 468 meters boldly characterizes the Lujiazui cityscape. The tower’s jagged reflection in the water mirrors Pudong’s modern development and people’s aspirations, while the new-classical edifices across the Huangpu River staunchly attest to Puxi’s old past. It should be noted that the Oriental Pearl TV Tower ranks the tallest in Asia and the third tallest in the world, only second to Toronto CN Tower (553.3m) and Moscow Ostankino Tower (533.3m).

The location of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower is very ideally chosen. It is at the tip of Lujiazui by the side of Huahngpu River, just opposite the world famous Bund of Shanghai.

The design scheme of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower was selected from 12 outstanding design schemes by nationwide well-known experts and approved by the Shanghai Municipal Government. The architects, inspired by rich imagination, arranged 13 spheres together with some ground facilities in the order of their sizes high up in the blue sky down to a carpet of green lawn like a string of pearls, while two dazzling ruby-like colossal spheres are propped high up. The harmonious entity of the tower presents at night when lights are on a picture of pearls, big and small, falling into a jade plate (quoted from “The Sontg of Pipa Girl” by Bei Juyi, a great Chinese poet in the Tang Dynasty), a scene full of poetic and artistic conception. It is not only a great attraction to visitors but also an important symbol of Shanghai.

The Oriental Pearl TV Tower, with a total floor space of 54,000 square meters, is mainly composed of the base, three gigantic columns (9 meters in diameter), the lower sphere (50 meters in diameter), the upper sphere (45 meters in diameter), and the spherical penthouse. The tower is outstanding and unique in configuration, and has good stability and aseismatic performance. It also represents the state-of-art in TV tower design, reflecting the progress of the modern science and technology. It is an exciting unity of arts and technology as well as architectural conception and structural design, and has contributed a significant effect to the world.

The Oriental Pearl TV Tower is equipped with a double deck elevator which travels at 4 meters per second and two high speed elevators at 7 meters per second, which will reach the upper sphee from the ground within 40 seconds. People will get a wonderful thrill being flung from sea level to the zenith in the elevators.

The upper sphere (from 250 m to 295 m) covers 9,480 square meters with the maximum capacity of 1,400. It boasts an observation deck, a revolving restaurant, KTV rooms and a discotheque. The sightseeing deck is 263 meters in height, making it the best place to get a bird’s eye view of Waibaidu Bridge flanked by the Monument to the People’s Heroes and the gray Russian Consulate on the north; the famed Bund, together with views from nine main roads, including Beijing Road, Nanjing Road, Yan’an Road, etc, on the west; the Shanghai harbor, with ocean liners passing in and out on the south, and the Pudong New Area, with numerous skyscrapers on the east. Standing on the deck, one gets the feeling that the world is belittled.

The revolving restaurant (267m in height), which turns one revolution every one hour, is an ideal place for visitors. Experienced chefs prepare set menus as well as buffets.

The spherical penthouse is 350 meters from the ground with an area of 280 square meters. There is a sightseeing terrace and a beautifully decorated meeting hall. The tower ingeniously incorporated the image of the outer space, the space ship, the missile and the atom in its structure, unifying perfectly modern technology with oriental culture.

The Oriental Pearl TV Tower hosts 6,000 visitors on a daily average. Up till now, 118 state heads from different countries and regions have visited the tower.

Jin Mao Tower

Jin Mao Tower is situated at the heart of Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone in Pudong New Area of Shanghai, boasting a height of 420 meters and a total floor space of around 290,000 square meters.

Jin Mao Tower, an 88-story skyscraper with 3 stories underground, is, up till now, the tallest building in the Mainland of China and the 3rd tallest in the world. It is an intelligent top-grade building, which combines efficiency of function with elegant aesthetic form. With world-famous architectural design, the structural profile of the building originated in the oriental ancient pagoda, a style which represents the oriental national form of design as well as the occidental modern style of building. Jin Mao Tower, therefore, may well be considered a representative work of post-modern architecture prevalent in recent years in the world.

Levels 3-50 of Jin Mao Tower are used for offices, Levels 51-52 for mechanical and electrical equipment, Levels 53-87 for the highest preeminent 5-star deluxe hotel in the world---Grand Hyatt Shanghai. The 6-story podium is a multi-functional building, while its Level 1 is used for a conference hall and an exhibition hall, its Level 2 for ballrooms and Levels 2-6 for shopping and recreation centers.

The Observation Deck of Jin Mao Tower is on Level 88, with a height of 340 meters above ground and an area of over 1,400 square meters, boasting its being the highest and the largest top-floor observation deck so far in China. Having a speed of 9.1 meters per second, tow express elevators will take visitors right up to the Observation Deck in 45 seconds. The Observation Deck, 8 meters in height, and surrounded by glass, aluminum and stainless steel walls, secures a bright and comfortable light. As it commands a panoramic view, visitors may look out of the window and see the Huangpu River winding through the city like a snake with shining waves resembling fish scales. When looking down below, they will get a birds’ eye view of the city: high-rise buildings of various styles stand like a forest, presenting a scene of boundless variety; streets busy with traffic crisscross the city, amidst the hustle and bustle of Shanghai; last but not least, there are the Nanpu Bridge and the Yangpu Bridge, with the Oriental Pearl TV Tower standing gracefully in between, offering a wonderful picture of “Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl”.

Jin Mao Tower also boasts a Grand Hyatt Hotel from the 53rd to the 86th floors, which makes it the loftiest hotel in the world. All hotel rooms (555 in all) are located above the 58th floor, giving guests an unparalleled view of Shanghai. People staying at the hotel will have a unique experience, because the building is so high, they must call downstairs to see if it is raining.

Shanghai International Convention Center

Shanghai International Convention Center is located to the southwest of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower. It was opened for business in August 1999, and the ’99 Fortune Global Forum was held here. Shanghai International Convention Center covers an area of 45,000 square meters with a total floor space of 110,000 square meters.

Shanghai International Convention Center consists of several modernized halls. The 45,000-square-meter multi-function hall, which can serve as an exhibition hall as well, is one of the largest in China. Without a single column, the grand hall embodies great momentum. Provided for the guests are the latest audio-visual equipment, satellite conferencing, simultaneous translation, etc.

The 800-seat meeting room is the key meeting room in Shanghai International Convention Center, which includes 800 representative seats in the main hall and a 150 seating press gallery in box. The meeting room is not only equipped with 10 plus 1 simultaneous translation system, speaking and voting systems for representatives and rostrum, and stereo amplifier, but also provided with systems such as video camera, computer interface and objects projection, which are necessary for international conferences.

Shanghai International Convention Center Hotel provides presidential and executive suites and standard rooms approaching 260 keys, and it offers restaurants of Chinese and Western cuisine together with a special tea house and café as well. As to the recreational facilities, the hotel is equipped with a night club, a gym, a singing and dancing hall, a health club, etc. the roof garden is the best spot to admire the Bund and to breathe the freshness of the garden flowers.

Lujiazui Central Green

Lujiazui Central Green is located at the Pudong entrance of the East Yan’an Road Tunnel. It was founded in 1997 with an area of 100,000 square meters. It is now the largest “Urban Green” in Shanghai.

At the entrance, eight steel “flowers” show a springing-up vitality. There are a 65,000-square-mete lawn and an 8,600-square-meter man-made lake in the shape of a diminutive Pudong Area in the heart of the green. There is in the green a combination of fountains, which spray water up to 50 meters high. The huge white tent, resembling a white conch, stands by the lake, extending an easy mood of relaxation to the tourists in the spreading green land. Winding orange concrete pavements make up a pattern of white magnolia, the city flower of Shanghai.

Dotting on the lawn weeping willows, white magnolias, gingkoes, cedars, pines, camphor trees, and maples. Two hundred-year-old Ju trees are planted just to the north of the green land. To the south of the green land, the graceful old buildings in Lujiazui Development Exhibition Hall surrounded by about 200 giant camphor trees add much to the vigor and liveliness of the green land.

The Riverside Promenade

The Riverside Promenade is 2,500 meters long. It starts from Taitongzhan Dock in the north, and ends up at Dongchang Road Dock in the south, nicely incorporating tourism, greenery, transportation and service facilities.

The Riverside Promenade is Shanghai’s East Bund in the 21st century, consisting of touching-water platforms, sloping green land, sightseeing routes, and Riverside Garden (former Pudong Park), which has been in existence for 50 years.

Standing by the riverside balustrades on the touching-water platform, visitors can enjoy a good view of the historic buildings on the West Bund. Turning to the other side of the platforms, visitors are greeted by a stretch of a gradually rising sloping field, where the flowers and the shrubs are shaded in the emerald green grass. In the park, lakes, kiosks, small bridges, rockeries, flower corridors, paths with giant arboreal and luxuriant flower shrubberies, offer visitors a sense of being away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Installed along the Riverside Promenade are 21 groups of spurting fountains, symbolizing the 21st century, the glass-wall panorama hall, the shipyard’s wharf of 70 years, a colossal iron anchor, a huge stone mushroom with the “Riverside Promenade” engraved on it, and the Oriental Pearl Wharf resembling a flying seagull. These man-made, natural, solemn, and delicate scenes are in harmony, complementing each other with their beauty.

The Century Park

The Century Park is situated in the Huamu Administrative and Cultural Center of Pudong Area. The park is 8 kilometers from the downtown area, and 24 kilometers from Hongqiao International Airport. Covering an area of 140.3 hectares, it is the largest ecological city park rich in natural features in Pudong Area as well as in Shanghai.

The overall plan is designed by the British LUC Company. The total investment is one billion RMB. The park highlights a large-area lawn, woods and lake, embodying the integration of oriental and occidental landscape art, and the concept of “human returning to nature”. There are seven scenic areas in the park, including a pastoral area, a scenic area, a beach area, a lawn area, a birds protection area, an international garden area and a small gold course. The park also includes an outdoor musical theater, a meeting plaza, a children’s recreation place, an angling place, with such landscaped spots as high post fountains, music pavilion fountains, a century clock of flowers, colossal relief sculptures, streams, a pebble and sand beach, a gingko road and a green pond. Inside the park, there are crisscrossed paths, undulating hills, evergreen trees and limpid water. Walking through the park, one feels in a land of peace and tranquility free from work and worry.

The Oriental Pearl Wharf

Taking shape on the Pudong side of the Huangpu River in 1998, the Oriental Pearl Wharf, a modern yacht wharf, is part of the Oriental Pearl Scenic Area. The wharf, in the shape of a seagull, is made of glass and steel. At night, the whole structure looks like a crystal pavilion. It has a floor space of 6,000 square meters, a waiting room, a VIP room, a restaurant and a bar.

The wharf is used for ferries and yachts. After it was put into service in 1998, people can take a yacht to the Riverside Promenade on the east side of the river and enjoy the splendid views of the city’s waterfront.

Shanghai Science and Technology Museum

Shanghai Science and Technology Museum is an important social and cultural project funded and established by Shanghai Municipal Government in implementing China’s basic policy of “revitalizing the nation through science and education”. It is also a base for science popularizing and education with “Nature, Mankind and Technology” as its theme. It integrates exhibition and participation, education and scientific research, cooperation and exchange, collection and manufacture, leisure and tourism into one entity. With the aim off improving the scientific attainments of the public and promoting the scientific advancement of the entire society, it is expected to be the window to advocate scientific knowledge, scientific methods, scientific ideology and scientific spirit for the whole community, especially for youngsters.

The museum covers an area of 68,000 square meters with a floor space of 98,000 square meters, built with a total investment of 1.758 billion yuan.

The museum consists of seven exhibition areas: the Earth’s Crust Exploration, Wide Spectrum of Life, Light of Wisdom, Children’s Science and Technology Land, Audio Visual Paradise, Cradle of Designers and Museum of Natural Science. It has an IMAS 3-D large screen theater, an IMAX dome theater and an IWERKS theater. For back-up facilities, it has a conference hall, a multi-functional hall and a bank.