Kung fu event kicks off in Henan

The 12th Zhengzhou International Shaolin Wushu Festival kicked off on Saturday, in Dengfeng, Henan province, attracting more than 2,200 kung fu masters from 65 countries.

The four-day festival will see 240 teams taking part in the event from around the world.

Wushu, or kung fu and martial arts, is enjoyed by not only Chinese, but also foreigners, said the organizers of the event.

With a history of more than 1,500 years, Shaolin temple appears often in movies and fictions and is the country's first professional institution for learning martial arts.

Chiara Caduff, 19, said she has been learning Shaolin Kung fu at a kung fu school in Switzerland for15 years. She got to know more about Chinese culture and the language over the years, according to her.

"It is for the first time that I'm coming to Shaolin, and I would like to learn more here at the birthplace of Shaolin kung fu," she said.