The show "An Earthly Paradise" is performed in Hangzhou Starlight Avenue Square after the opening ceremonies for the Hangzhou West Lake Expo. [chinadaily.com.cn]

More than 100,000 fireworks are set to dazzle tens of thousands of visitors the night of Oct 24 along West Lake and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal at the 11th Annual Hangzhou West Lake International Expo.

Fifteen entities worked with the Hangzhou government to make the expo a success, including the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the National Tourism Bureau, the Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and the Zhejiang province government.

"The West Lake expo is going to spur domestic business and international trade," Huang Feng, vice-director of the Organizing Committee, told chinadaily.com.cn. "Capital is seeking suitable places and opportunities, which the expo will provide."

Wang Guoping, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee, said the expo focuses on reaching out to businesses worldwide. "The expo is organized with a global vision, through global thinking," he said.

In addition to business-oriented exhibits, the 2009 expo also features some for consumers, such as the Wedding Expo, Livable Life Carnival and the Furniture Expo.

The expo can be visited virtually through its official Web site, www.xh-expo.com. Available only in Mandarin, the site devotes specific pages to each of the expo's events.

The Expo starts the third weekend in October every year and now lasts up to three weeks. It has spread beyond Hangzhou, with the cities of Zhuji, Anji, Shangyu, and Deqing also participating.

Wuyun Qimuge, vice chairperson of the NPC Standing Committee, and Lu Zushan, governor of Zhejiang province, were among the dignitaries on hand on Oct 17 for the expo's opening this year.

Hangzhou is the capital city of Zhejiang province in East China. It is a key central city in the Yangtze River Delta and a traffic hub in Southeast China.