"The Suzhou Pavilion's theme is protecting and making use of historical and cultural heritage," said Tang Zilai, chief designer of the Suzhou Pavilion.

"The city of Suzhou has proved that if the old town is preserved well, it can be a competitive edge for the city. The development of the old town brings opportunities for the new city," he added.

Other cases at BUPA show artists' designs and how the construction of a landmark building can be the Midas touch for a city's development when it is stranded between the old and the new.

For instance, in 1991, the municipal government of the Spanish city Bilbao decided to build a modern art museum to revitalize its tourism industry.

The completion of the titanium-covered Guggenheim Museum, hailed by many as a highly creative construction, inspired people to be creative and enabled the city to reinvigorate its economy.

There are other examples at BUPA showing how city designers' crave a combination of old and new. In fact, the planning and construction of many projects at the BUPA are exemplary cases of the old being made into the new.

The most eye-catching and symbolic construction at BUPA is a 165-meter chimney-turned-"Expo Thermometer" on the Huangpu River.

The tall chimney from Shanghai's century-old power plant in Puxi is now the tallest structure at the Expo site. Atop it sits a LED screen with a thermometer displaying the temperature.

Connected to the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau, the "Expo Thermometer" updates to give a precise weather forecast every hour.

In 1896 the Nanshi Power Plant on the Huangpu River powered 30 electric bulbs to make Shanghai an "ever-bright city."

Yet 108 years later, workshops at the power plant's former site, now park area for the expo site, have been transformed into shiny and clean exhibition halls.

The transformation of the chimney and utilization of the power plant showcases the recycling of the old city to upgrade the modern city, according to BUPA deputy head Yu Li.

"The chimney used to be the symbol of advanced productivity. However, with the passage of time, it now represents carbon emissions and is shunned by a modern city."

(Xinhua News Agency May 8, 2010)