In Beijing, thousands of people gathered in Tian’anmen square, the “heart” of the country, for the flag-raising ceremony at early morning.

Fifty five year old Pan Liren, together with several other model workers from Shenzhen, a showcase of China’s reform and opening up achievements in south China’s Guangdong Province, were among the crowd.

“I deeply feel the greatness of our country at this special moment,” said Pan. “We are masters of our country and will contribute more to the country’s prosperity,” said his companion.

Shanghai, the country’s largest industrial and trade center, was filled with colorful flags and balloons.

People, young and old, enjoyed themselves by singing and dancing. A total of 360 performances will be staged during the seven-day holiday.

In Lhasa, capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, a rare meteorological spectacle - a double aureole around the sun appeared in the sky in the morning and was believed by pilgrims to be a good omen.

In the square in front of the Potala Palace, a grand award ceremony was held to honor ten local model workers and three advanced units.

In Kunming, capital of southwest China’s Yunnan Province, young people representing all 26 ethnic groups of the province gathered at the Ethnic Groups Village for a joint celebration.

Besides Kunming, more than 240 celebrating activities will also be hosted in 15 local cities during the festival period.

In Chengdu, capital of west China’s Sichuan Province, thousands of people thronged at the city’s central park, the People’s Park, to enjoy themselves with singing, dancing and a variety of entertainment.

In Hohhot, capital of north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, sightseeing resorts with local color have opened to entertain thousands of tourists from home and abroad.

Thousands upon thousands visitors went to the newly-discovered “Great Wall” in south China’s Hunan Province which opened to visitors on the first day of China’s week-long Labor Day holiday.

The main part of the 190-km “Southern China Great Wall” is located in Fenghuang County in western Hunan. Built during the Ming Dynasty (1368--1644) by the local Miao minority ethnic group, the “Southern China Great Wall” is 2.3-meter high and 1.7-meter wide.

In Guangzhou City, capital of south China’s Guangdong Province, at least 400,000 residents spent the first day of the seven-day Labor Day holiday by touring apartment buildings in over 100 newly built residential quarters in the city.

Touring and purchasing new apartments has become a new fashion of observing holidays and various real estate companies provide shuttle buses for their potential buyers.

The Guangzhou Civil Affairs Bureau arranged for tour groups to visit new-style apartments for the elderly.

(Xinhua 05/01/2001)