Around Town

Your news round-up for the month of March

Delays For Disney

Although the hotly anticipated theme park was slated to open at the end of this year, unfortunately for Mickey Mouse enthusiasts, it will instead open in the first half of 2016. The sixth park for the company has been in the works for ten years, but if something is worth doing, it’s worth doing right. We can’t wait to see the park for ourselves, next year.

Grannies Gone Wild

Shanghai Zoo had to call the police last month after elderly members of a dance troupe, who had been asked to obey the rules and not play loud music that was disturbing nearby animals, began smashing the public sign boards. The zoo workers were concerned that the music would disturb the animals during their hibernation period. However, many of the dancers refused to listen and displayed their displeasure physically. Moral of the story: don’t mess with dancing seniors.

Shanghai Saviour

A local Shanghai man donated stem cells to try and help save the life of a seven year old British boy with leukaemia. The China Marrow Donor Programme passed the cells to a representative from the British hospital where the young boy, of Asian origin, was staying. For those wanting to find out more about the donor register, contact the Red Cross Society of China.

Anti-pollution Projects

Great and unprecedented steps are being taken to reduce pollution in the city. A budget of RMB 100 billion has been set for the next three years to be spent on over 200 projects that will aim to tackle eight areas of concern - water, air, soil, waste, industry, agriculture, ecology and circular economy in order to improve the city’s pollution level. Shanghai’s overall air quality has already improved since 2013 thanks to anti-pollution methods such as the use of cleaner energy sources.