Chinese cultural event helps elderly cope with loneliness

KIEV, Ukraine - "I love this very much! My soul is singing," says Lucia Pavlovna, who is joining in with a Ukrainian folk song during the Spring Festival celebration in a nursing home on the outskirts of Kiev.

The celebration, named "Warmth of Culture", which was organized by the Confucius Institute of the Kiev National Linguistic University, means a lot to Pavlovna, who is suffering from loneliness.

Since her children moved abroad four years ago, Pavlovna, 87, has been living alone in a small room in the nursing home. She says she spends her time watching soap operas on TV or remembering the good old days, when she worked as an engineer at an industrial plant.