Posing with the Mascot for the 2010 Expo in Shanghai

Everyone (I’m being serious) loves Haibao, the mascot of the 2010 World Expo ( 2010上海世界博览会).

Sure, you may think he looks very much like a character made out of toothpaste (the hair flip, mainly) but he’s everywhere in Shanghai.

Today’s “Expo” is the modern version of the World’s Fair held every two years - is the name given to various large public exhibitions held since the mid-19th century. They are the third largest event in the world in terms of economic and cultural impact after the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics.

The last Expo held in the United States was in 1984 in New Orleans – check out the Wikipedia entry for the full list.

Now that you’re up-to-date on a little bit of international culture, let’s talk techy.

Not only is HaiBao everywhere, but so is information on the Expo. The branding of this event (complete with everyone’s favorite blue mascot) is clearly working, because I basically had to fight my way through people to take a photo with this blue man. nice work, Shanghai.