BASELWORLD 2006 http://www.baselshow.com/ March 30-April 6, 2006 We exhibited �gwn-1�h at BASELWORLD 2006, the world leading Show for watches and jewellery, for the fifth time. The 34th World Watch and Jewellery Show, BASELWORLD 2006 took place from March 30 - April 6, 2006. Basel which hosted the show is the second major city in Switzerland. It is a city where you will find traditional Swiss architecture and museums all with great atmosphere. About 2,200 exhibitors from 45 different countries were at the world's largest Watch and Jewellery Show and buyers and journalists gathered from all over the world. About 90,000 people are said to visit yearly and this year there seemed to be an increase of public visitors in comparison to previous year. The venue, which consists of 6 halls, covers an area of 160,000 square meters! In the halls, watches, jewellery, precious gems and related brands were exhibited. Each morning at 9:00 when the halls open the buyers were found in all seriousness and it was not unusual to have a full appointment by lunchtime. After 18:00 when the show closes there were still many people seen in nearby cafes exchanging news and rejoicing in the reunion. The entire town had "BASEL WORLD" flags and it shows that this was a major event for the whole city. We exhibited wn-1 and ws-1 inside their manufacturer, SII (Seiko Instruments Inc.)'s booth again. As we were exhibited on the 1st floor near the entrance, many passing by guests stopped to take a better look at the watch. As BASEL WORLD being a show where all the latest creations are shown, more attentions are paid on the new pieces. Yet even after the 5th appearance, an ongoing interest with wn-1 and ws-1 was seen. "I'm back this year to take a look at the watch", "Actually I owe both wn-1 and ws-1" were some of the many warm remarks I received. Where buyers and journalists showed an reunion-like regard, many public visitors showed an encounter-like interest towards the still unknown watch. "A watch? I've never seen anything like this.", "The idea behind is wonderful" and "Being a project created by a nonprofit organization sounds great." were some comments to be heard. There was a continuous interest towards its original design and movement structure that enables hour-hand ("Earth-dial") to move at the same speed and in the same direction as the real Earth. At the same time I found it striking to see a real interest towards the watch with a concept and a story. Several people asked whether a new model will be released which showed the increase interest in the evolved Earth Watch. With several request of a new model "without altering the concept", this BASEL WORLD gave me a feeling that there is are definitely more people who are deeply concerned to "Think the Earth"! Report: Asaka Barsley , Think the Earth Project