From August 28 to 29, international students and teachers from the ZUFE School of International Education and Studies went to Chun'an County to experience a two-day event called "Rural Revitalization + Chinese Culture." The event was organized to let international students at ZUFE know more about traditional Chinese culture and new rural areas in China. It is a good opportunity for international students to witness the achievements China has made in economy and society and in the building of a beautiful countryside.
For the first stop, they came to the Central Primary School of Fuwen Township of Chun'an County, and visited the ‘three-dimensional’ new world. The school is surrounded by lucid waters and lush mountains, and is a pleasant place for children to study and play. The colorful glass buildings at the school also inspired the childlike purity of the overseas students, who played basketball and volleyball with the school children on the playground. Afterwards, they drove along the Chun'an-Yangqitan Line, one of Zhejiang's most beautiful highways, into the "place where dreams set sail": Xiajiang Village, Fengshuling Town, Chun'an County. The roads in the Xiajiang Village used to be muddy, causing a lot of trouble for the villagers' food and clothing. Guided by the idea that "Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets", officials in this village combined characteristic tourist resources with revolutionary significance to build new rural areas, gradually developing the village into a famous tourist attraction.
In Xiajiang Village, the international students witnessed the development of China’s rural areas and the achievements these villages have made from the countryside landscape, traditional rural culture, and the increasing living standards of the local people. They also gave a lively and interesting class of cultural exchange to the pupils there. Jin Mu, an international student from Zambia, was deeply moved and hoped to come here to be a country teacher after graduation.
Advancing the construction of beautiful rural areas is contingent on outstanding traditional local culture. Traditional Chinese medical culture is a prominent feature of Linqi Town, Chun'an County. Inspired by the spirit of the unity of knowledge and action, and seeking knowledge through action, the teachers and students went into the "Linqi Town for Herb Nurturing" to experience the cultural elements and the magical charm of Chinese medicine in an all-round way. Guided by the staff of Linqi Town, they visited China • Qiandao Lake Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Longxing Superman • Traditional Chinese Medicine Cultural Street, the Market for Trading Chinese Traditional Medicinal Crops and China-Chic • Internet Nourishment Experience Center. At the Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine, they learned a lot about Chinese medicine, such as its development, history, theoretical basis, famous pharmacists, ancient medical formulas, and other information. In the Chinese Medicine Cultural Street and the Chinese Herbal Medicine Trading Market, teachers and students tasted Ganoderma spore and herbal tea while learning the health benefits of the tea. The local employees also told them about the magical effect of the medicine in curing burns and scalds in Linqi Town. The overseas students found it amazing and expressed their desire to bring Chinese medicine back to their countries. They also came to Linqi's Junior High School to exchange ideas with local middle school students, encouraging the students there to study hard and broaden their horizons.
Pingmen Township of Chun’an County was known as the “Hometown of Mu Opera” in Zhejiang Province. In order to experience the culture of the local Mu Opera in Chun’an, the international students tried the "bamboo horse dance" by themselves. They also learned certain sections from the Mu Opera Growing Wheat at Nanshan Mountain from local children. This opera tells the story of a couple singing folk songs all the way to the field to grow wheat, with a unique musical voice, simple style and popular lines, fully demonstrating the strong local flavor and humanistic customs of Chun'an. These international students teamed up in pairs to showcase their what they learned and won bursts of laughter and applause from the audience. At the end of this learning process, Lin Hai, a student from Russia, said that she hoped to have more opportunities to come to Pingmen Township in the future to learn Mu Opera and help spread Mu Opera culture to the world.
Through this experience, the international students felt the unique charm of the beautiful countryside in Chun'an County and experienced the traditional culture of the Chinese nation. They witnessed the achievements made by the local governments in their efforts to help build an ecological civilization across the whole province and even the whole country. At the same time, children in Chun'an County also broadened their horizons, enriched their spiritual world, and felt the charm of international culture.
