Some migrant workers (poor farmers who move to the cities to work) visited the Expo. Liu Huafeng, a construction worker from central China's Henan Province, said he found out how wonderful urban life can be after visiting the Expo.

The Expo will have a profound influence on Chinese, who have learned the way to behave as citizens of the global village, including queuing in orderly lines.

The organizers said they have gained experience in public governance by interacting with visitors over the Expo-period.

At the beginning of the Expo, which opened on May 1, just 200,000 visitors had caused headaches for the organizers. But they successfully dealt a record single-day attendance of 1.03 million on Oct. 16.

With more umbrellas, fences, fans, signs, and wheelchairs, facilities and service at the Expo site greatly improved.

"The changes were made in response to visitors' complaints and suggestions," said Qian Bojin, director of the Expo visitors' service center.

BECOMING MORE FAMILIAR WITH CHINA

The Expo also offered the world, still extricating itself from the shadows of the financial crisis, a window through which it could better observe and understand China, a poor, sometimes mysterious country with a gigantic world presence.

The Expo was especially noteworthy for a number of reasons.