China's Largest Gingerbread House

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<p>When it comes to China, it seems that bigger is better.&nbsp; It has the world's largest population, wall, <b><a href="http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/264587.aspx">Ferris wheel</a></b>, <b><a href="http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/191499.aspx">public restroom</a></b>, and now, one of the world's largest gingerbread cities.</p><p>The vast majority of the world probably doesn't think of China hosting the world's largest Christmas party, but throughout the country, the signs of Christmas are unmistakable.&nbsp; From Christmas trees to Santas at the mall, it's impossible to avoid the holiday cheer.</p><p>In the lobby of the&nbsp; <a href="http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1184"><b>Sheraton Shenyang Lido&nbsp;Hotel</b></a><b>, </b>many visitors&nbsp;aren't staying the night, they're just catching a glimpse of the&nbsp;massive structure.&nbsp; Made of&nbsp;25,000 cookies, and weighing well over 2,000 pounds, this city covers over&nbsp;nearly 270&nbsp;square feet&nbsp;of space.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>Jiang Yunfeng, the head baker at the hotel, says the house, which is a miniature version of <font face="Tahoma">Shenyang</font><font face="Arial"><font size="2">, is designed to "show people the excellent buildings in Shenyang, show them the vitality of Shenyang, and to make more people know Shenyang."&nbsp;&nbsp;As you can see in the video, the&nbsp;gingerbread designers</font></font><font face="Arial"><font size="2">&nbsp;have included everything from the hotel to the large TV towers, to the Olympic stadium.</font></font></p><p><font size="2">While <b><a href="http://english.cri.cn/3100/2007/11/29/168@299748.htm">CRI reports</a></b> the builder is applying to the Guinness Book of World Records,&nbsp;the competition&nbsp;</font>is pretty stiff.&nbsp; In 2006, the&nbsp;<a href="http://%20www.mallofamerica.com/about_moa_event_detail_objectname_gingerbread_house.aspx"><b>Mall of America</b></a>&nbsp;featured a house built by the current world record holder, Roger Pelcher.&nbsp; At over 60 feet, high and nearly 1,500 square feet total, this massive structure consisted of 14,250 pounds of gingerbread and almost 5,000 pounds of icing.</p><p>Right now,&nbsp;Shenyang probably isn't quite ready to challenge Minneapolis for the gingerbread crown, but over the next few years we could see a new reigning champ.&nbsp; In the meantime, with thousands of pounds of gingerbread and icing floating around, watch out for the extra calories!</p>