I love fireworks!

Those of you who know me well will recall my love of fireworks. They are in my top three favourite things EVER. Really. Last night in Chongqing we had fireworks. Remember, if the Chinese know anything, they know fireworks.

Chongqing is currently host to the Asia-Pacific Cities Summit. I'm not too sure in regards to the details of what it's all about but the whole city has been preened and beautified in preparation for this international forum. Pots of flowers have been layed out along many of the streets, intricate displays constructed, statues polished, and government employees and many other workers have been advised to take three days off to reduce traffic congestion on the roads.

Last night to celebrate the opening of the Summit the city put on a fireworks display along the Yangtze River. At the moment I'm staying about 30 minutes from the centre of the city and I didn't expect to be able to see the fireworks. How wrong I was. Despite being so far from the action I still had a fantastic view from the 12th floor apartment I am staying in. It was the biggest pyrotechnic display I have witnessed and it went for so long that I nearly got bored. The display lasted for about 40 minutes, and was just incredible. Being so far from the city centre I only saw a small fraction of the action, apparently it was about five times larger than what I was witness to. I know this because on the bus on the way in to the office this morning the news* showed a highlights reel of the display, which also included a pyrotechnic Chinese dragon floating down the river. There was also footage of an opening ceremony of sorts yesterday with hundreds of dancers in traditional dress banging on drums and dancing about. It was pretty spectacular.

I hope there is another set of fireworks to celebrate the end of the summit tomorrow night. By then I will have moved into the new apartment and will have a bird's eye view of the Yangtze.

* How did I manage to see the Morning News while on the bus? More to follow...