Weekly Rewind: Beijing 2022, Balloon-Based Internet in Sri Lanka, and the World's Weirdest Border Dispute
Chinese people wearing traditional costumes gather to celebrate as Beijing is announced as the host city for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, in Shijiazhuang, the capital of northern China's Hebei province on July 31, 2015. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)
Welcome to Asia Society’s Weekly Rewind, featuring some of the best Asia-related content you may have missed. This week:
Stories
Say Goodbye to the Weirdest Border Dispute in the World
Adam Taylor | Washington Post
India and Bangladesh recently began the exchange of 160 enclaves, effectively ending a nearly 70-year long border dispute. Adam Taylor describes the mind-boggling level of border confusion: “Dahala Khagrabari, the third-order enclave in question, was a part of India, surrounded by a Bangladeshi enclave, which was surrounded by an Indian enclave, which was surrounded by Bangladesh.”
A Winter Olympics in a City Without Snow
Matt Schiavenza | The Atlantic
Beijing became the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games after the International Olympic Committee selected the Chinese capital over Almaty, Kazakhstan in a meeting last week. This selection is notable given the general lack of snow in Beijing, China’s “lack of tradition” in winter sports, and the country’s political climate and human rights record.
Sri Lanka Will Be The First Country To Deploy Google's Balloon-Based Internet
Charlie Sorrel | Co.Exist
The nation of Sri Lanka recently signed a contract to become the world’s first country with complete, nationwide 3G coverage. This will be made possible through Project Loon, Google’s balloon-based Internet network, and will involve 13 balloons “floating 12 miles above the Earth, and beaming down connections to every town and village.”
7 Reasons Shanghai Disneyland is Going to be Insane
Ken Storey | Orlando Weekly
Get a sneak preview of Shanghai Disneyland, which will become the largest theme park in China when it opens in the spring of 2016. Spoiler alert: Pirates of the Caribbean and Toy Story will be represented in the theme park’s attractions.
Multimedia
Sunrise Over Hiroshima on the 70th Anniversary of the Atomic Bomb
The Guardian
Watch a time lapse video showing the sun rising over Hiroshima on Thursday, which marked the 70th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb on the Japanese city.
Overheard This Week
"President Obama and other policymakers, please come to the A-bombed cities, hear the hibakusha (surviving victims) with your own ears, and encounter the reality of the atomic bombings."
—Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui [USA TODAY]
By the Numbers
$4.4 billion — The estimated cost for building the new Shanghai Disneyland Resort, opening in Spring 2016 [Orlando Weekly]
17 million — The anticipated number of annual visitors at Shanghai Disneyland (In comparison, Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World receives 19.3 million guests) [Orlando Weekly]
$3.9 billion — The projected budget for the 2022 Winter Olympics, awarded to Beijing last week [Wall Street Journal]
Each week, Asia Blog will feature highlights from Asia-focused feature writing, photography, and multimedia. Do you have recommendations? Please email a link and any related details to [email protected] (we regret that we won’t be able to respond directly to each inquiry).
Opinions expressed on highlighted articles are solely those of the author(s), not of the Asia Society.