When fantasy comes to life

Zhao Juan, Gong Huiling and Xiao Miao, all from Fuyang Normal College in Anhui province, are the mermaids in show run by the city's aquarium. Dressed in their costumes, the girls swim across the swaying grass, passing the turtles and fish. Smiling, they wave to the audience. Zhao Juan twists her "tail" as she follows the soothing and melodious music. Then she makes a deep dive, flips and rotates. This wins her a lot of applause from the audience. The Mermaid Show is pleasing to the eyes, but it takes years of painstakingly practice. The "sea" water temperature in the tanks is maintained at 29 C throughout the year. But winters can still be uncomfortable. The tank is 4 meters deep, and once in the participants have to hold their breaths for at least 1 minute. "Initially I could hold my breath for only 10 seconds, but after practice I can now hold it for about 1 minute." says Zhao Juan. In order to present a perfect performance, the girls spend much of their time on practice. And with so much time spent in the tank every day, the girls jokingly say they have been "bleached". During the recent Chinese New Year celebrations, the girls had to perform more than 10 shows a day. They bathe after every performance to avoid damage to their skin. Although the work is quite tough, the girls feel it is worth it, especially when they hear cheers from the audience.

Photos By Wang Biao for China Daily

(China Daily 04/02/2016 page6)