The World Carnival, the famous mobile fun fair, opens Friday afternoon in Beijing as scheduled.

The carnival is expected to receive about 2.5 million visitors, according to the World Carnival organizers.

If weather and tourist demand permit, the operation might be extended to October 16, a week longer than planned, said Zhang Shuhua, an organizer of the Carnival.

Recruitment of temporary helpers have attracted several thousands of university undergraduates from universities.

"We received 160,000 resumes and hired 800 undergraduates as site assistants," Zhang said.

Most Beijing newspapers covered the news of the carnival opening on Friday. Beijing Times and China Times also specified "how to play in carnival".

The World Carnival landed in Beijing the first time in 2004 and received over 1 million guests in 52 days.

(China Daily July 30, 2005)