Venice of the East to star in Shanghai Expo

Following a remarkable showing at Suzhou's first-ever World's Fair presence in Aichi, Japan, four years ago, the neighboring city of Shanghai is poised to make an even bigger splash at next year's expo.

The only city that has never served as a Chinese capital to be chosen to represent China at the 2005 Aichi World Expo impressed the world when it brought Chinese and Japanese together through a traditional bell ceremony.

Looking to match in stature its performance at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, Suzhou plans to stop at nothing short of rolling out the red carpet in the Urban Best Practices Area.