Editor's note

This year is the 21st anniversary of the opening of the Shanghai metro. The subway has facilitated more than 13 billion journeys during its 21 years, and half of Shanghai citizens cite the metro as their favored mode of transport. To commemorate the anniversary, each week the Global Times will take an in-depth look at one metro station and its surroundings. In the case of downtown stations, we will focus on points of interest within walking distance; while for suburban areas, we will cast our net a little wider.

Sitting on the eastern terminus of metro Line 7 just a block south of Century Park, Huamu Road Station is in the center of the hustle and bustle of Pudong New Area with easy access to the city's largest exhibition center, high-end hotels, large-scale office buildings and fancy shopping malls.

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Shanghai New International Expo Centre

Occupying a 200,000-square-meter indoor space and a 100,000-square-meter outdoor space, Shanghai New International Expo Centre (2345 Longyang Road, 2890-6888 or 2890-6666) is currently the largest and most functional exhibition center in Shanghai.

Opened in 2001, the center is jointly owned by the German Exposition Gorp and Shanghai Lujiazui Exhibition Development Company and hosts more than 3 million guests and around 80 world-class exhibitions annually.

A series of high-profile exhibitions will take place at the expo center this year, including the Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition (April 20 to April 29), China Joy (July 31 to August 3), the China International Industry Fair (November 4 to November 8) and the China International Travel Mart (November 13 to November 16).

As the first settler in the neighborhood, the expo center was the icebreaker for the development of the Huamu community and helped transform the desolate area into a dynamic business center. Over the past decade, numerous hospitality facilities, art and culture venues and shopping centers catering for the visitors and exhibitors sprung up like mushrooms around the center.

Lanterns displayed at the ongoing Happy the Spring Festival exhibition at Zendai Himalayas Center Photos: Zhu Jialei/GT

Zendai Himalayas Center

Designed by the acclaimed Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, whose other works include the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and CAFA (China Central Academy of Fine Arts) Art Museum in Beijing, Zendai Himalayas Center (No.1-4, Lane 1188 Fangdian Road, 6075-8555) is an eye-catching complex that features the soft curves of an "organic forest" contained within the hard and symmetrical lines of "crystalline cubes."

Some 29 towering columns that form the "forest" have created a spacious room on the ground floor of the main building, which was named Wuji Square by the designer.

An exhibition of folk customs is currently being held in the square and the outdoor space on Fangdian Road. Entitled Happy the Spring Festival, the exhibition features hundreds of traditional lanterns depicting horses, dragons, fish and kylins made by local craftsmen. In addition, large-scale lantern installations are also on display, including dragon boats and Chinese-style pavilions. The exhibition runs from 5 pm to 9 pm every day until February 14. For more information, please call 6087-8816.

Daguan Theatre, where the new season of China's Got Talent is being filmed, is another attraction of the center. The venue is a modern performance stage with state-of-the-art multimedia and digital technology. Thanks to its multifunctional design, the theater can hold a wide range of events, from classic concerts and fashion shows to stage dramas, musicals, operas and even banquets. Visit http://www.daguantheatre.cn/ or call 6075-8555 for information about upcoming performances.

Kerry Parkside

Sitting opposite Zendai Himalayas Center, Kerry Parkside (1378 Huamu Road, 5033-8155) is another landmark in the neighborhood that integrates service apartments, a five-star hotel, a shopping center and offices.

For those looking for a one-stop shopping experience, Kerry Parkside offers a clutch of high-end brands.

Founded by Guangdong businessman Feng Futian in Hong Kong in 1898, Vive was once a time-honored cosmetic brand in China. However, after it merged with other private skincare brands in the 1950s to form the State-owned Shanghai Jahwa, the famous brand Vive gradually disappeared from the market.

Shanghai Vive (Shop 129, 1/F, 5017-3686), which was re-launched by Shanghai Jahwa in 2010, is a luxury skincare brand that comes with old Shanghai-style packaging featuring images of ladies in qipao from the 1930s. The store sells a full selection of skincare products, accessories and perfumes at an average price of 1,000 yuan ($165).

If this nostalgic brand is not your style, the chic Parisian hair salon Franck Provost (Shop 117, 1/F, 5083-0227) might be a better choice. With simple black and white decoration, Franck Provost is one of the city's best-known hair salons staffed by an internationally trained team of stylists and technicians. A basic haircut starts from 160 yuan and English service is available at the salon.

The high-end supermarket Olé (Shop 108, B1/F, 6075-7936) is one of the most visited stores in the mall, selling baked goods, seafood, organic produce, imported food and wine.

Besides the wide selection of products and kid-friendly shopping environment, the supermarket also boasts an eco-friendly "ATM." At the entrance is an automatic plastic bottle recycling machine. When you finish a drink, put the plastic bottle into the machine, and then input your cellphone number. A 0.1 yuan reclaim will be added to your phone credit immediately. Alternatively, you can press the "donate" button to pass the money to charity.