Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Our
visit in Beijing came to an end with a tour of Mastercard Arena, led by senior
event supervisor, James Zhu. The arena played host to the 2008 Olympic Games
and is one of the two larger capacity facilities in the country. We were all
thoroughly impressed with its eight sided JumboTron, movie-theatre style seats,
luxury suites, and Bacardi VIP bar. We agreed that the amenities are very
similar to the facilities in the U.S., if not better.
It was
at this venue where fans left their seats and raced to the stage during an
Avril Lavigne concert. Both security and patrons in China have limited
knowledge on what is allowed and what is not during shows of this size. This is
a significant cultural issue that must be addressed as the sport and
entertainment business continue to grow in China. In the end, Avril had to be escorted
to the back of the house until the crowd was brought under control.
Following
the tour we were all excited to depart for Hong Kong… the girls in particular,
as the city is known as a “shoppers’ paradise!” Our view of the harbor from our 25th floor room is not
too shabby either!
No comments:
Post a Comment