Robots, driverless vehicles, VR and 5G… Have I traveled to the future? No! It’s the Cities and Demonstration Park Exhibition at the first China-CEEC Expo held in Ningbo.

Several booths have robots walking around, be it the welcoming robots or waitress bots. The gee-whiz inventions made by Chinese manufacturers are sure to dispel the old myths of China and create new ones.

On top of commodities fairs, conferences and symposiums, a number of featured trade exhibitions displaying national images of European countries and regional development of China are also taking place during the 1st China-CEEC Expo and International Consumer Goods Fair.

The impressions the visitors take away are likely to shape such decisions as what countries their companies will do business with, what kinds of food they will purchase, where they will go on vacation, and even where they will study abroad.

Today, Jess and I went on a tour to the Cities and Demonstration Parks Exhibition to get an ultimate high-tech plus culture experience.

Stepping into the hall, we received a high-tech welcome from China Mobile’s 5G low –delay robot. According to the guide, this 5G robot achieves the effect of man-machine cooperation by 5G's low-delay capability. It can substitute workers at dangerous scenes, such as ports, mining areas, firefighting workplaces, etc. The bot shook hands with me, as a ‘warm’ welcome?

The exhibits of China Mobile range from VR classroom, driverless cleanser to 5G progress, representational to abstract.

We also got a chance to experience the application of the ‘superfast’ 5G. Last week, China just granted 5G licenses for commercial use, marking the beginning of a new era in the country's telecommunication industry. The launch coordinates three leading state-backed carriers, China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom, to bring commercial 5G service to 40 Chinese cities, including Ningbo.

With the advent of the 5G era, the high bandwidth and low latency of 5G will bring a more immersive VR experience. The chair thrilled me in the video was the super-experience VR experience chair. When I put the goggles on, a 3D picture of the universe turned up right in front of me. It was like sitting on a roller coaster. Hard to breathe, out of thrill…

I tried Skywalker, a VR game manufactured by a Wenzhou-base company Seekers VR. Just as its name suggests, the equipment with rich game content and precise spatial positioning, making players feel like waking in the space. Jess laughed all the way while I was playing the game against the air. 

We saw another bot at the Huzhou City exhibition booth. The waitress robot was produced in Changxing Economic and Technological Development Zone, which was listed as the first national economic and technological development zone at the county level by the State Council. If I stand in front of her, it will ask me to move. Smart!

When it comes to Zhejiang manufacturing, we have to say Geely Automobile, an international automotive group headquartered in Hangzhou, is Zhejiang’s pride. Geely Group has been manufacturing its own cars before it owned the Swedish passenger car maker Volvo Cars since 2010, when it acquired the company from Ford.

The video shows Geely’s Borui GE PHEV which carries an 11.5 kW/h ternary lithium battery that supports power from charging piles outputs 6.6 kW or 3.3 kW and 220V household. When using 6.6 kW charging piles, Borui GE needs only 1.5 hours to finish charging and would able to cruise 60 km or more without petrol.

I tried to pose like a model. Apparently, it just didn’t seem right… Am I too fat for the place? (A desperate look…) 

Enough of science, technology and urban practices, we headed to the cultural Shaoxing City Pavilion, where we tasted authentic Shaoxing tea. Haven’t heard of Shaoxing tea? Well, you must have tasted it in Starbucks. The tea is sold to 77 countries and regions in the world. Believe it or not, Shaoxing tea virtually exists in Starbucks, Nestle, etc. The data from Shaoxing Customs shows that the tea exported from Shaoxing accounts for 30% of the national total.

Historically, tea has been an export commodity in Shaoxing. Adjacent to port cities, Shaoxing enjoys a favorable location. The diligent and capable Shaoxing people had shipped the tea abroad 300 years ago.

Its soup bears a color of yellowish brown and tastes a bit bold and sweet. Wondering what it tastes like? Come on over and get a sip of it.

Located at No. 7 Pavilion in Ningbo International Convention and Exhibition Center, the exhibition themed “Opening up makes life better” is attended by 40 industrial parks and 105 enterprises and organizations of seven provinces and municipalities.

Exhibition topics include China-CEEC cooperation, the BRI achievements, the revitalization of the Northeast China (Jilin), special industrial parks of Yangtze River Delta Region, Zhejiang cities’ development, opening-up windows, cross-border e-business piloting zone, and famous Zhejiang enterprises. It is ready to attract more investment, facilitate the investment of private enterprises and enhance the opening up.

The exhibition will run through June 8 to 12. Don’t miss out on the chance to see a blend of Made-in-China high-tech and cool Chinese traditions!

(Thanks Jess Zichen Hu for holding the camera and shooting for our VLOG.)