Construction of Romania's national pavilion for the 2010 World Expo broke ground yesterday.

Designed as a green apple, the Romania Pavilion, also called "Greenopolis," will have a budget of 2.5 million euros (US$3.5 million) and cover 2,000 square meters.

President of the Romanian Senate Mircea Geoana (right) and Zhong Yanqun, deputy director of the World Expo Shanghai Executive Committee, dot the eyes of two "lions," signifying construction has started on the Romania Pavilion, yesterday.

It will reflect the importance of a healthy lifestyle, sustainable development and knowledge-based solutions for modern society, Ferdinand Nagy, commissioner of the World Exhibition of Romania, said yesterday.

Nagy also said Romania was trying to highlight a city's historical and cultural heritage in order to understand, develop and translate this wisdom into a better quality of life for contemporary urban Romanian citizens.

He said Greenopolis was a term with universal meaning, represented by the apple, which means health, knowledge, freshness, temptation and eternity.

The inside of the pavilion is designed to have multifunctional spaces over five stories including indoor and outdoor stages, restaurants, and a panoramic viewing platform for the Expo site.

The Romania Pavilion will host various events during the Expo including cultural events, art shows, conferences and seminars dedicated to the development of economic, scientific and tour exchanges with other nations.

(Shanghai Daily June 27, 2009)