Biz Scene: Biz Unusual

Fly for free

For 20 days this month, Spring Airlines, a small domestic private airline company, has made available 20 "zero yuan" tickets every day on the flight route from Wuhan to Shanghai. The sensational promotion has triggered wide discussion in the fiercely competitive industry, while other airline companies are increasing their ticket prices as Christmas draws near. Spring Airlines' chairman Wang Zhenghua said many Chinese have never experienced flying, and instead of letting seats go empty, the airline is offering this special deal to customers who would not usually be able to afford air travel.

Pricey feast

Guangzhou Jiujia or Guangzhou Restaurant, a famous restaurant, will hold a luxurious feast charging 100,000 yuan per person during a luxury fair in the capital city of South China's Guangdong Province. The expensive feast will consist of various delicacies including dishes once fed to the royal family in the Qing Dynasty, the most expensive Cantonese dishes, as well as French cuisine, and Turkish food.

Respite for elderly

Winter in northern China is regarded as a tough season by many elderly people. With more old people intending to spend winter in South China's tropical Hainan Island, some businessmen in Haikou and Sanya in the province have set up boarding apartments for the elderly to tap into the market.

The apartments are usually located near the vegetable market and have convenient transportation and living facilities. During the period from November to May, the apartments are rented to the old people coming from other parts of the country. As winter sets in, many apartments have been fully booked this year, since crowds of middle-aged people in the north want to rent the apartments for their parents.

Games weddings

Many couples are choosing to get married next year to coincide with the Beijing Olympic Games. Some five-star hotels in Shenyang, capital of Liaoning Province, have set the price of a wedding banquet at 2,008 yuan - double the standard cost of 1,000 yuan.

Despite the expense, the Games weddings are almost fully booked already, with some couples securing their tables as early as 2006.

Darn good idea

Five years ago, Li Hongbo quit her job as senior manager of a hotel in Anshan, Liaoning Province, to learn embroidery in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province.

Now, aged 32, Li has her own embroidery studio in her hometown and sells distinctive Suzhou-style needlework.

Her first piece, "A Town in Memory", sold for 15,000 yuan. She said many foreigners now seek out her studio to view her work.

(China Daily 12/07/2007 page15)