Changchun Special: Changchun tourism festival promises months of fun

Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin province, will hold a tourism festival from June 26 to September 27.

It will be the fourth time the city holds such an event. The Xiaoxia festival, or festival for the summer, is expected to entertain local residents and international visitors.

A total of 75 activities including sports, culture and trade exhibitions will be held.

On the opening day, an event expected to attract crowds of 30,000 will be held in the city's forests in the morning. There will also be a party with picnics, dancing and drinking at the Jingyuetan Lake on that day.

In the afternoon, there will be activities including street calligraphy and folk dances. Representatives from over 200 travel agencies and hotels will also be present to provide people with consultation services.

"We will strive to make the tourism festival one of the best entertainment events for our citizens this summer," Changchun Mayor Cui Jie said.

A bicycle race and a swimming event will be held on August 28 and 29, respectively. There will be exhibitions of flowers, including peony, rose and tulip and fruit-picking activities in Changchun's suburban areas.

Song and dance duet Er'renzhuan - a traditional opera in Northeast China, acrobatics, folk arts and ceremonies to worship Confucius are also planned to entertain those interested in the city's culture.

In addition, business people may also get some deals done when attending exhibitions about cars, agriculture, sculpture, housing and films.

At this year's festival, experts and scholars will, for the first time, gather in Changchun to have lectures and discussions on the city's future development.

Changchun received over 20 million visitors at the previous three tourism festivals, bringing the city's tourism revenue to more than 20 billion yuan.

During this year's festival, all of the city's large events including a film festival, and car exhibition, will all be part of the three-month long event.

Investment and tourism exchange activities between Changchun and Nantou county of Taiwan province will also be held around the opening of the festival from June 24 to 28.

Nantou county's chief Lee Chaoching will attend a ceremony where water from the Sun Moon Lake of Taiwan will be exchanged for water of Jingyuetan Lake of Changchun as a sign of cooperation and friendship.

(China Daily 06/18/2010 page16)