A big collector's spin on pins

Medeth Alqahtani is a man who captures a lot of attention, not just because of his resplendent Arab dress, but also for the chain he wears around his neck, replete with 50 Expo souvenir pins.

Medeth Alqahtani shows 200 souvenir pins he has collected since the beginning of the Expo 2010 Shanghai. Photos by Yong Kai / China Daily

But that is only part of Alqahtani's collection. The 49-year-old supervisor at the Qatar Pavilion has so far managed to collect 200 souvenir pins since the beginning of Expo 2010 Shanghai in May. His ultimate aim is to collect a full set of commemorative Expo pins, an achievement he will proudly display once back in his home country.

"When I am not busy, I plan to continue to walk around the Expo Garden pavilion by pavilion to collect a full set of souvenir pins," said Alqahtani, an avid collector of commemorative pins from around the world. "I will buy a hat after I go back to Qatar and stick all the pins into the hat to show my achievement."

The pins he has collected so far come from two sources; some are purchased from souvenir stores in the Expo pavilions, while others are collected through exchanges with other collectors. In one case, he swapped a gold pin from the Oman Pavilion to get five pins from different countries.

To collect as many pins as possible, Alqahtani said he tries every method he can think of. He recalls that during a trip to Yangzhou in Jiangsu province, he gave everyone in the tour group a pin of the Qatar Pavilion and invited passengers to exchange their pins.

Alqahtani is considered somewhat of an expert among souvenir pin collectors in the Expo Garden and has gained such a reputation that even bus driver and security guards know him.

"I will be approached by pin collectors every two or three days to see whether I have some new pins to exchange with them," he said.

Through his pin collecting, Alqahtani said he has established friendships with many of the staff at other pavilions.

"It offers me a chance to communicate with them and we get to know each other," said Alqahtani.

While Alqahtani's collecting has helped him establish an expanding network of friends, his hobby has also contributed to him learning more about different cultures.

"Sometimes I will receive some pins that I cannot tell the country's name from its national flag, then I will search the Internet to get some general information about the country," he said. "It is a good way of learning about different cultures."

Alqahtani said his pins have become an important part of his life. "I felt frustrated once when I mistakenly left them in the Qatar Pavilion. I finished what I was doing and rushed back to the pavilion quickly as possible to see that they were safe."

During his worldwide travels for business, Alqahtani has collected pins and coins from many different nations.

Pin collecting helps Alqahtani get to know more people at the Expo.