Asiad begins with glittering opening ceremony

Guangzhou: An extravagant opening ceremony got the 16th edition of the Asian Games underway in the Chinese city of Guangzhou on Friday.

The 16-day mega event will witness a conglomeration of record 9,704 athletes from 45 Asian countries and regions.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, IOC president Jacques Rogge and leaders and royal family members from other Asian countries were also present during the ceremony.

The Asian Games ceremony drew traditional southern Chinese culture and featured a strong watery theme given its setting on tiny Haixinsha island on the Pearl River which runs through the heart of Guangzhou.
A boat parade named "Setting Sail" on the Pearl River was one of the highlights of the opening ceremony.
The 45-minute boat parade demonstrated the charm of modern China and showcased the Cantonese culture that's unique to this sprawling city.

The 9.3-km parade involved 46 boats and had athletes and officials from 45 members of the Olympic Council of Asia

Apart from the mysterious fire-lighting ritual, the opening ceremony featured 6000 performers and a blitz of fireworks.

Five planes and 1,000 rockets were kept ready to dispel rain that could interrupt the opening ceremony.
The security level of the city was also raised to its highest, with stringent checks going on in the city's subways and temporary traffic controls imposed on roads adjacent to the venue of the opening ceremony.
Furthermore, residents in several communities near Haixinsha Island were temporarily removed from homes during the gala evening for security concerns.

Lin Jie, who resides in Dijing Community along the river, said she had to stay at her parents' house on Friday night. Authorities paid every person who had to move for the night 300 yuan in compensation.
Officials said the city will welcome the tourists with "a sea of flowers" -- 50 million pots of flowers.
Furthermore, the city has set up 600 volunteer stations to serve the city's visitors during the Games.
Guangzhou has registered 1.16 million volunteers, or one of every eight Guangzhou citizens.