Reopening of Mao Zedong's ex-residence draws crowds

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The reopening of Mao Zedong's one-time residence in Shanghai has drawn large crowds wishing to catch a glimpse of the life of the former chairman of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Mao's old residence in Jing'an District went through a two-year renovation to return to its original style and was opened on Tuesday to about 500 visitors.

It has been transformed into a museum, with many exhibits on show for the first time, presenting Mao's work and daily life.

Figurines of Mao's family. /Sohu Photo

In 1924, Mao went to Shanghai for the 10th time and lived there, spending a long time on revolutionary work. The house, built in 1915, was made of bricks and wood. Mao's family lived on the first floor at the time.

Gao Zilin, 20, a Shanghai office worker who has applied to join the CPC, was among the visitors to the museum, even though it was raining. "After hearing about the reopening, I came immediately," she said.

"The digital displays in the gallery are really interesting, because they help me understand Mao's life and work in a more direct way. It's a great Party class."

Zhu Run, who is in charge of cultural relics at the museum, said that the main building has almost 100 years of history, but has a limited capacity for visitors. "We plan to integrate 'red' tourism resources in Jing'an District and the Party stories more efficiently," Zhu said.

Part of the exhibition at Mao's former residence. /Sohu Photo

Red tours – visits to the sites of early communist activities – are popular in China and are receiving huge amounts of government money.

In 2016, a total of 1.6 billion yuan (240 million US dollars) was spent to support the niche tourism market, according to the Ministry of Finance.

China's National Development and Reform Commission has encouraged preservation of revolutionary sites and released a list of red tourism sites in 2015. The number of red tourists is expected to exceed 1.5 billion by 2020, according to the National Tourism Administration.

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Source(s): Global Times