Arms outstretched
Dancers, exhibitions from Western China amaze Russian audiences
Russians are feeling the charm of Chinese culture as a series of events known as 2018 Experience China are being staged Friday through Monday in Moscow and Saint Petersburg.
The events, with western Chinese culture as the theme, were organized by the State Council Information Office and the Chinese embassy in Russia.
On Sunday, a film exhibition was held in Moscow, and two documentaries The Third Pole and Deep into Shambhala were screened.
The two films tell from different angles tales of people and nature living in harmony in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The films reflect the daily lives and the inner peace of the local people, and show the beauty of nature and of humanity.
In the opening ceremony in Moscow on Friday, artists from Gansu province and the Tibet autonomous region performed local dances and Tibetan songs.
Su Fangqiu, minister of the Chinese embassy, said the 2018 Experience China series of events is an important window on the Belt and Road Initiative.
Su said the performances and exhibitions will help foster mutual understanding, cultural communication and cooperation between China and the rest of the world.
Galina Kulikova, first vicepresident of the Russia-China Friendship Association, said the cultural and art exchanges have played a significant role in developing the Sino-Russian relationship.
As the relation of the two countries has been raised to its highest level ever, more Russian people are gaining interest in and understanding of Chinese culture, especially that of the remote western regions, Kulikova said.
Also on Friday, a photo exhibition themed Colorful West was shown in Moscow. In it, more than 40 photos display the natural scenery, various folk customs and lively economic development in western China.
“Apart from the wellknown Chinese mainstream culture, we are also interested in the art and culture in the western region,” Anna Markovskaya, an 18-year-old freshman at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, said at the opening ceremony.