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HK Eye | Russian ship impresses Chinese journalists and Disneyland profit impresses all

Also, photo series of cramped living spaces shocks the web

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Show boat enters Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour. Photo: Sam Tsang

Week of February 18

Hong Kong hit international headlines last week thanks to happy news from the “happiest place on earth”: Hong Kong Disneyland posted it first annual profit since opening eight years ago.

But first, a message from The Voice of Russia. The government-funded media outlet reported on Chinese journalists fawning over the world's oldest ship still in operation, the 91-year-old Sedov, which paid a visit to Hong Kong. The captain said:

“The journalists were interested in every detail – not only in the ship (which is quite understandable, because in our time, a sailing vessel is not a common sight), but also in things like what we eat and other details of our daily routine. In Russia, people don’t usually ask about such details. We answered all the questions and showed all of the ship – from the ceremony hall to the kitchen – to our guests.”

A crew members said:

“By all appearances, the Chinese were very impressed with this show. The crick-crack of cameras accompanied us all the way. I believe, very soon, reportages about this will appear in nearly all Chinese newspapers.”

For comparison, here is South China Morning Post’s story and one from The Standard about the ship’s visit (Sadly not a word about what the Sedov crew eats).
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Disney dreams come true

Bernie Lo, of CNBC and based in Hong Kong, notes that the new Toy Story and Grizzly Gulch attractions helped Hong Kong Disneyland turn a profit. He also points out that taxpayers footed most of the cost of the project - to disappointing results. After the first year of operation in 2005, attendance has dropped drastically.
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Mainland visitors, the biggest group of theme park enthusiasts, has been key to Disneyland’s growth. But last year visits by Hong Kong residents grew 21 per cent, while mainland visits expanded only 13 per cent.
Bloomberg’s Businessweek says China is seeing its own theme park boom. More than 100 new parks opened in 2012, it reported, citing Communist Party paper The People’s Daily.
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