World of Stories opens at Mercato Mall

The cheers of young kids echoed in the halls of the Mercato Mall on Saturday as the character of the clown in Mrs. Bumbles’ Magic Toy Store began their skit. For one afternoon, Mercato became a magical toy wonderland offering entertainment to children as part of the Dubai Summer Surprises 2012. Known as The Wonderful World of Stories, the first event featured a musical show, which highlighted the importance of reading among kids. Mrs. Bumbles, one of the main characters in the show, encouraged kids of all ages to read as it is where children can discover a lot of things. “The show was very nice, especially the singing,” Salma Abdul Latif, 10, told Gulf News. “I think it is true that it is important to read for your mind. And it’s good for your future.” Besides the free stage show which runs three times a day at 5:30pm, 6:45 pm, and 8pm, a variety of exciting live family entertainment, including storytelling, interactive workshops, puppet making, card making and others, await visitors, especially kids. The show will run until July 14. The Wonderful World of Stories was first launched in 2006 and has now evolved offering customised shows, workshops, and fictional characters coming to life.Meanwhile, Modhesh World, which is part of the DSS and is considered one of the largest indoor edutainment theme parks in the Middle East, welcomed more than 15,000 visitors during the first 3 days of Dubai Summer Surprises at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). With its 40 zones strategically distributed between Halls 1-6 in addition to Za’abeel Hall 3, the new location is few steps away from the Dubai Metro Station, has free outdoor parking and indoor low-priced parking of AED 10 for one full day. Modhesh World has been attracting families from different nationalities due to its various offerings which include entertainment and musical shows, and new zones such as the Lego Play Area, Panasonic Zone and the Science Planetarium. Promising ease of access and more fun, its new location at DWTC features a free parking area which has a capacity of 2,000 cars and multi-story indoor parking with a capacity of 1,200 cars. Launched in 2000, Modhesh World welcomed half-a-million visitors last year. The expansive family entertainment theme-park hosts exhilarating zones, in addition to exciting international cartoon and stage shows – all of which are housed in a fully air-conditioned, child-safe environment.from gulfnews.com