Thematic pavilions Bridge pavilion The
Bridge Pavilion was one of the most emblematic buildings of Expo 2008. Designed by
Zaha Hadid, it was built in two levels with the shape of a
gladiolus opening and closing. It joins the neighborhood of La Almozara and the Expo site with a central island in the river
Ebro. The Bridge Pavilion hosted the exposition
Water – a unique resource, designed by
Ralph Appelbaum Associates, which tried to present water as a universal human right, to inform visitors how water is a unique resource and to explain water management procedures and encourage citizen participation.
Torre del Agua The
Torre del Agua was another emblematic building of Expo 2008 and its vertical icon. Designed by Enrique de Teresa, it is high with of floor space. On the top floor, there is a panoramic bar with fantastic views over Zaragoza. Inside the tower there is a high sculpture called
Splash, which represents a splash of water, "the arrival of life on our planet". The Splash sculpture, based on dynamic simulation systems, was designed by
Mona Kim, Todd Palmer, Olga Subirós and Simon Taylor from Program Collective. The Torre del Agua hosted the exposition
Water for life where "audiovisual media and lighting play a key role in the way the contents are communicated".
Aquarium This thematic pavilion, which remained in operation after the expo, is the biggest
freshwater aquarium in Europe, with 300 species of fauna from rivers around the world in 60 tanks or terrariums. Rivers represented are: • The
Nile: It contains species of the great African lakes. It also has crocodiles and an exhibition on the
Mediterranean and the
Red Sea. • The
Mekong: In this river visitors will find species of the
Himalayas, gardens from the river's lower course, the Pacific Ocean and
coral reefs. • The
Amazon River: It is divided into three different areas. The first of them is the
Amazon jungle with its
coconut trees and
mangroves. The second area is about the Amazon forest while the third area is the
mangrove swamp with an exhibition on the Atlantic Ocean. • The
Murray-Darling river: This exhibition begins in the flooded regions and goes through desert areas. It finishes with a video exhibition about birds. • The
Ebro: It is also represented in two areas. The first area is a mountain cave and the second is the course of the river. There will also be an exhibition on the
Mediterranean Sea. • The "World River": It represents the past, when "all the continents were united as a single island surrounded by ocean".
Thematic squares Thirst This thematic square employed mirrors, audiovisual projections and combinations of light and sound to create optical illusions. It was in diameter, covering a total area of of which were the exposition area.
Igloo of salt Designed by Cloud 9 / Enric Ruiz-Geli, this plaza's architecture was that of an enigmatic building. It was an inflatable structure covered with salt that reflected the sun's rays and lit up at night as if it had stored all of the necessary energy to continue to function. This themed plaza was designed according to Expo 2008's sustainability criteria: the use of
PVC was avoided in electrical wiring, as well as tropical wood, synthetic varnish or solvent-based paints; taps made use of water-saving systems. Additionally, the frame was hired out to avoid having to
demolish it once the expo was complete. The use of
EFTE in the building's three-layered roof made air conditioning unnecessary. One of the EFTE layers was silver-plated to
refract light and prevent outside heat from penetrating the building; air in the inflatable components and a
Brine system irrigating them cooled the interior. All of this created a temperate building, meaning that the
climate control system only needed to work against
body heat produced by visitors and heat given off by equipment used in the exhibition. This way the organisers could make use of a system that was much more sustainable and inexpensive than conventional air conditioning.
Cities of water This square had no walls, so its contents were visible from outside. The exhibit was about water as an "urban resource" and a "natural element in the process of improving quality of life in cities".
Extreme water This square symbolised the moment when a wave breaks on the beach. It was divided into two areas: the first was the sensorial area with 120 mobile seats where audiovisuals were projected; the second was the ideas area with interactive platforms, images and texts about water and its risks.
Oikos, water and energy This exhibit was about getting energy from water.
Shared water This thematic square showed visitors how political divisions affect the management of water.
Aquatic inspirations This square hosted the show
El hombre vertiente, created by the Argentine Pichón Baldinu, six times a day.
Participants pavilion Country pavilions More than one hundred countries, plus dozens of companies and NGOs, participated in Expo 2008. The confirmed list had these 104 countries (arranged in alphabetical order): The 17
autonomous communities of Spain and two autonomous cities of
Ceuta and
Melilla also participated, as did as the
United Nations and the
European Union. The pavilions for official participants were divided into eight large buildings and into five differentiated eco-geographical areas within the Expo 2008 Exposition site. Those areas were: • Islands and Coasts • Oasis • Ice and snow • Temperate Forests • Tropical Rainforests • Mountains and High Plains • Grasslands, Steppes and Savannahs • Rivers and Flat plains The joint pavilions corresponding to the eco-geographic areas of Grasslands, Steppes and Savannahs, Tropical Rainforests and Islands and Coasts, were built by the organisers to house the pavilions of countries of
Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean Community (
CARICOM), respectively. The total surface area of the participating countries pavilions was . Spain and the region of Aragon, as hosts, had their own separate pavilions. The Pavilion of Spain was designed by Patxi Mangado, and the Pavilion of Aragon, which resembled local basketweaving, by Daniel Olano.
Citizen's initiative pavilion This pavilion had the shape of a beacon, "a symbol of hope for the future of water in our world". It expressed the vitality of ordinary people and non-governmental organisations. The
Beacon was situated by the Bridge Pavilion entrance.
Gold Prize award The
Philippines, on 19 September 2008 won the "Gold Prize", the Expo's highest award for a participating country. The award noted the quality of the Philippine pavilion's internal and external décor, consisting of 1,000 crystal-like bubble sand, as well as its functionality, which had supreme relevance to the exposition's theme of "Water and Sustainable Development". Tourism Secretary
Joseph Ace Durano said "this recognition is truly well-deserved as our country’s wealthy aquatic life has been captured by the equally rich imagination of our fellowmen. While other countries utilized ultra modern technology, we chose to highlight more community-involved practices as well as natural land irrigation, aquatic recreation and marine resources preservation". The Philippine pavilion's attractions included the meeting of the two
mascots, Fluvi and Filippo, and "Filipinas Te Espera Nights", a series of marketing events. ==Shows==