On February 12, during the Lantern Festival of the Year of the Snake according to the Chinese lunar calendar, the much - awaited "Celebrating the Lantern Festival" grand parade in Emei City arrived as scheduled. The downtown area was bustling with colorful floats, lanterns, traditional dances, folk performances, and intangible cultural heritage displays.
Six international students from our college, dressed in festive attire, joined the local residents in playing the waist drum and performing the yangko dance, adding a strong festive atmosphere to the Lantern Festival. These students, from Nepal, Thailand, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, participated in the event with great interest in Chinese traditional culture. To deliver the best performance, they began waist - drum training six days in advance, starting from basic rhythms and eventually mastering the entire set of movements through hard work.
On the day of the event, the students were energetic and spirited. Following the cheerful drumbeats, they waved their drumsticks in unison, creating a powerful and impressive performance that earned them continuous applause and cheers from the audience.
"This is my first time participating in a Chinese Lantern Festival event. It's very lively and interesting!" said Fasha from Bangladesh excitedly. "I really like China. The Chinese people are so warm - hearted."
Organizing international students to participate in traditional Chinese festivals is an important measure for the college to promote internationalization and cultural exchanges. In the future, the college will continue to create more opportunities for international students to experience Chinese culture, enabling them to become friendly ambassadors of cultural exchange between China and other countries.
By participating in the Lantern Festival, the international students not only enriched their extracurricular lives but also experienced the unique charm of Chinese traditional culture firsthand, building a bridge of friendship for cultural exchanges between China and other countries.
