Intl students embrace Lantern Festival traditions in Linyi museum tour

LINYI, March 3 -- On the eve of the Lantern Festival, the Linyi International Communication Center invited international students from Linyi University to the Linyi City Museum for an immersive cultural experience, offering them a vibrant glimpse into the rich traditions of the festive occasion.

Hailing from Morocco, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and other countries, the students engaged in a diverse array of activities, including cultural lectures, intangible cultural heritage workshops, historical artifact viewings, and digital art exhibitions. The event was designed to deepen their appreciation for the customs of the Lantern Festival and the enduring allure of fine traditional Chinese culture.

The program commenced with a special lecture where museum educators illuminated the origins, traditional customs, and cultural significance of the Lantern Festival, emphasizing its core values of reunion, harmony, and the time-honored practice of praying for good fortune.

A particularly engaging segment was the hands-on intangible cultural heritage workshop. The students crafted festive lanterns and tried their hand at woodblock New Year picture printing, experiencing the delicate artistry involved in cutting paper, applying ink, and pressing prints. The atmosphere was further enlivened by a traditional "pitch-pot" (touhu) game area, where participants gained firsthand experience of an ancient Chinese pastime that combined skill with ritual etiquette.

Within the museum's exhibition halls, the students paused to admire precious cultural relics such as Han Dynasty stone carvings and historical stele inscriptions, tracing the thousand-year legacy of the Lantern Festival's lantern-lighting customs. The experience culminated at the "Boundless Ink" immersive digital art exhibition, where traditional ink-wash painting converges with modern technology, presenting ancient culture in a dynamic and accessible format.

"I only knew that we eat tangyuan (sweet glutinous rice balls) during the Lantern Festival. Today's activities helped me understand the many touching stories behind it," said Zhang Wen, a student from Morocco. She noted that the museum visit provided her with a more comprehensive and profound understanding of fine traditional Chinese culture. "In the museum, I felt as though I could touch the history and culture spanning thousands of years. I was truly amazed."

The event served as a platform for international students in Linyi to connect with traditional Chinese culture and appreciate the distinct charm of the Yimeng region. The Linyi International Communication Center has announced plans to continue launching cross-cultural exchange activities, aiming to vividly share Linyi‘s stories and showcase its unique allure and contemporary vitality to a global audience.

Editor：Lotus