Ocean Silk Road museum's ship comes in

An ancient ship sitting at the bottom of the sea off Yangjiang, Guangdong Province for more than 1,000 years will be salvaged next year, with experts hoping to recover 60,000 to 80,000 rare antiques.

It will be the first attempt to raise an entire ancient ship from the ocean in archaeological history.

The challenging project is expected to take a year and cost at least 100 million yuan (US$12.3 million).

The priceless antiques will eventually be displayed in a new museum Guangdong Ocean Silk Road Museum where construction work will start in December.

www.southcn.com

Gay citizens march for tolerance

Nearly a hundred gays and lesbians from Shenzhen and Guangzhou held a gathering for a march recently, hoping to promote understanding and tolerance.

Wearing red anti-AIDS ribbons, they held aloft a huge rainbow flag, with an area of 90 square metres, as they walked six kilometres along the seashore east of Shenzhen.

Organizers posted news of the event on the Internet, and quickly received a positive response.

"We just want to convey a message that we homosexuals also have the right and capability to live happily in the sunshine," said an organizer.

Southern Metropolis News

Seven to go for Soviet stamp fanatic

A stamp collector from Nanhai District of Foshan, Guangdong Province has collected 6,373 stamps out of the total 6,380 stamps that were circulated in the former Soviet Union.

The 70-year-old Zheng Qingyuan began the hobby in 1958 with a view to gaining a deeper understanding of the social and economic development of the then powerful Soviet Union.

He keeps the treasured stamps locked in a safe, and dreams of getting his hands on the remaining seven stamps.

Guangzhou Daily

Exhibitions to show off business success

China's first commerce museum will soon open in Zhongshan, Guangdong Province, home to the country's first four department stores and a prosperous commercial zone in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

So far nearly 2,000 articles that reflect the boom have been collected, including banknotes, contracts, trademarks, tax bills and stocks as well as adverts and commodity packaging.

The local government plans to expand the museum from the current area of more than 2,000 square metres to nearly 12,000 square metres in the next few years, adding several small museums with local characteristics.

Guangzhou Daily

Mixed results in medical emergency drill

In a recent first-aid drill in Shenzhen, all of the ambulances from authorized hospitals arrived in good time, but some doctors failed to meet proper standards.

One doctor arrived in slippers, later claiming he had just finished an operation when the alarm sounded.

Some senior doctors did not know how to perform Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation, a must for all medical workers.

The average emergency response time was 1 minute and 38 seconds, compared to 2 minutes and 34 seconds last year.

Southern Metropolis News

(China Daily 10/28/2005 page5)