Another gift for World Expo City, Ala Nong Zanghae. (That’s Shanghainese in Pinyin for 阿拉侬上海, which is Shanghainese for “your and our Shanghai”.) Look for Sanlitun a la Shanghai — as in another Apple Store in the People’s Republic.

We quote AppleInsider:

Apple’s cylindrical glass tower entrance to the new underground retail megastore in Shanghai, China, set to open mid July, is now decked in red curtains, signaling close proximity to launch.

The new real property is one of the two new stores opening in Shanghai this summer and counts among the 25 new Apple Stores that the company’s chief operations executive Tim Cook said would open in China by the end of 2011.

The new store’s design is reminiscent of Apple’s iconic flagship New York City store on Fifth Avenue, which is similarly located entirely underground and features a dramatic giant glass cube entrance.

The Apple Store in Shanghai is located between the IFC Mall and the Oriental Pearl TV Tower in Shanghai’s Lujiazui biz district. Metro-wise, it’s around the Lujiazui station on Line 2, which will also be a future interchange with Line 14. (Both lines are “wide train” lines and major trunk routes underground in the city.) It’s in Pudong, which has been derided as “Pu Jersey” (this will bring up “ahs” for those in the Big Apple and New Jersey, as well as, interestingly, Australians), but which, being on the eastern side of the Huangpu River, is hosting the China Pavillion at the World Expo.

If you wanted in right now, though, good luck. The place is now in red curtains, guarded by ninjas who won’t allow photography. (China is cracking down, more and more, on photography as of late; we’ve heard them doing so in railway stations, Subway stops, and even taking a pic of the Beijing CBD has “aroused interest” from “relevant persons”.)

And why red? It’s got little to do with the politics (although the party and national flag are all in red, as well), and more to do with a Chinese tradition that dates back to imperial times. Red’s seen as a good color in China, so much so that weddings are all-red ceremonies. Obviously, when Apple opens the thing in Shanghai, it’s got to be in a festive mood, right?

We’ll either have live coverage on that day (when the Lujiazui store opens) or link to places providing live coverage.