The lavish opening of Expo 2020 in Dubai, the biggest event since the start of the pandemic

DUBAI.- United Arab Emirates open this thursday at Dubai with great fanfare Expo 2020, the first universal exhibition to be held in the Middle East and the biggest global event since the start of the pandemic of Covid-19.

The young crown prince of Dubai, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, officially opened the event, which cost $ 7 billion.

“The whole world comes together in the United Arab Emirates as we open the Dubai Expo 2020 with the blessing of Allah,” Sheikh Hamdan said before the start of the festivities.

Projections and play of light illuminated Al Wasl Square, a futuristic vaulted space, a symbol of Islamic architecture. There were also several concerts, including those of famous Emirati diva Ahlam and British singer Ellie Goulding.

Chinese pianist Lang Lang was also among the guest artists, as was Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, who closed the show in front of Emirati leaders.

Postponed last year due to the health crisis, the exhibition will be open to the public from Friday, in the middle of the desert outside Dubai, the city of skyscrapers and luxury.

The exhibition will unveil architectural wonders and technological innovations of the more than 190 countries represented in its pavilions.

The first Universal Exhibition was held in 1851 in London, at the Crystal Palace, a structure created for the occasion. And in Paris, in 1889, he presented the iconic Eiffel Tower to the world.

This Emirati Expo 2020 promises to become the biggest event ever in the Middle East, in the year leading up to the FIFA World Cup, to be held in its wealthy neighbor, Qatar.

Dubai expects some 25 million visitors over the next six months because, unlike Japan, which banned the public during the Tokyo Olympics, it opens its doors wide to foreign tourists provided they wear a mask and respect distancing social.

All visitors must be vaccinated or, failing this, present a very recent negative PCR test.

Panda robot and solar rain

The Emirates are among the countries that have vaccinated the population the fastest, with nearly 20 million doses for 10 million inhabitants.

Expo 2020 reveals the great ambitions of Dubqi, who is breaking records to attract the attention of the media and especially tourists. his The Burj Khalifa tower for example is, with its 828 meters, the highest in the world.

Thanks to the delay caused by the pandemic, the country will be able to celebrate on December 2, in the midst of Expo 2020, the 50th anniversary of the creation of this federation of seven emirates, whose capital is Abu Dhabi.

Among the many planned attractions are the Harlem Globetrotters basketball players and a Chinese panda robot. Fans of futuristic travel will be able to ride in a ‘Hyperloop’ cabin (which travels at high speed in a tube) and history buffs will be able to admire an ancient sarcophagus in the Egyptian pavilion.

China has one of the largest bulbous pavilions, while Morocco has built its own on earth for environmental reasons. The Dutch have a pyramid covered with edible plants and irrigated by solar rainwater.

The majority of European states are participating in this event, despite the fact that the European Parliament called for a boycott “to demonstrate its rejection of human rights violations in the United Arab Emirates”.

NGOs often accuse the country of violating the freedom of expression and the conditions of foreign workers, such as those who participated in the construction of the Expo 2020 site.

AFP Agency

Photo montage: Enrique Villegas