2016年CRI Visitors Enjoy Mixture of Cultures at Shanghai Disney

（单词翻译）

According to many tourists who got the chance to visit the park before its official opening on Jun 16th, they were excited to encounter Chinese elements.

Famous Disney icon¹ Donald Duck is practicing with his TaiChi master, and adding his own style. Visitors say it was amusing to see the character's new moves.

"This is the first time I have seen it. Very funny."

"It's interesting. I like it."

"It is very innovative²."

The performance is just part of Disney's Chinese immersion³ strategy. The creators of the fantasy world explain that they wanted Chinese guests to have a sense of familiarity as they interact with the characters.

Xu Chang is the assistant producer of Shanghai Disney:

"We want to have performances that Chinese audiences are familiar with, as well as delivering the act in a very Disney style."

The same thoughtfulness can be seen in the 'twelve friends,' 12 Disney characters selected to match the Chinese zodiac animals, and the peony flowers, a symbol of Chinese culture, decorating the park's castle.

A set of stamps will be officially released on June 16, the day Shanghai Disney opens to visitors. The set of two includes the "Mickey and Minnie" stamp and "Enchanted⁴ Storybook Castle" stamp.

Their special design fully⁵ embodies⁶ Chinese elements, such as the Mandarin⁷ collar and peony patterns on the clothes of Mickey and Minnie, as well as the peony magnolia flowers, representing the city of Shanghai, against the background of the castle.

President of Shanghai Shendi Group Fan Xiping says Shanghai Disney is an important symbol of Sino-U.S. cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

"The permission of China's post authorities to issue the Disney-themed stamps fully demonstrated their approval of this project and appreciation⁸ for the value of cooperation and exchanges carried by such cute souvenirs as stamps."

Gu Zhengwei, director of the commodities department at the Shanghai Disney Resort, introduces the special design for the souvenirs.

"We have products like this retro-styled Shanghai Minnie Mouse. It contains Chinese elements like the jade⁹ on its wrist and its Chinese cheongsam."

As the sun sets over the resort in the evening, visitors have been filled with a new set of feelings as buildings festooned with brilliant lights and cartoon characters transform the resort into a fairy tale castle.

Right after the firework show, tourists say their visit had been far more interesting than they had imagined.

"Though there are so many visitors here, I'm still happy. The staff are everywhere and always smile when being asked questions and directing the way. I felt especially happy during the parade. Those classic characters from Disney that I know all showed up. All the actors were active and smiled all the way."

For CRI, I am Chi Huiguang reporting in Shanghai.