Date: Fri, 26 Dec 1997 06:49:56 PST
Subject: M-G: Mao as tourist attraction
From: rphelan1-AT-juno.com (Roger C Phelan)



R.C.Phelan


12/26/97 01:50

Visitors Flocking to Mao Birthplace: Xinhua

BEIJING. The birthplace of the founder of communist China, Mao Zedong, is
becoming increasingly popular among tourists, the official Xinhua news
agency said Friday. More than 14 million people have visited the site, in
the town of Shaoshan in central Hunan province, since 1986, the agency
said. They view Mao's childhood home and his later residence built during
the 1960s. They can also visit his parents' graves and a museum with
thousands of exhibits, including documents and papers belonging to Mao.
The local government has erected a bronze statue of Mao in an attempt to
transform the site into a tourist attraction.


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