A series of activities called "Hello Beijing" have been organized for foreigners in Beijing to have an in-depth experience of the city's cultures. On this occasion, 65 children from 25 different countries were invited to the Vineyard Sheng Lu in Beijing to deeply explore the skills associated with the intangible cultural heritage (ICH). Foreign families in Beijing gathered to learn Beijing Opera, paint clay rabbits for the Mid-Autumn Festival, and savor traditional Beijing snacks.

The series of activities are hosted by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism. Following the requirements of international talent services for the construction of the "two zones" (the Integrated National Demonstration Zone for Opening up the Service Sector and the China (Beijing) Pilot Free Trade Zone), the activities aimed to strengthen external cultural publicity and promotion, further enhance Beijing's attractiveness to foreign nationals, and serve the capital's high-quality development and opening up to the world in the new era.

Centering around the theme of "'Little Bunny' ICH Family Day", more than ten representative ICH projects from Beijing were designed on-site for experiential activities. Each child could participate in the activities by following the stamp collection booklet to experience the projects step by step. During the experience of Chinese opera, teachers and students from the Beijing Vocational College of Opera and Arts brought children's opera costumes and props, with which children from China and abroad performed the Beijing Opera together. In the handicraft workshop area, various handicrafts were displayed, such as painting clay rabbits for the Mid-Autumn Festival, making clay figurines, crafting kites, and creating sugar paintings, allowing children to experience the charm of folk arts. In the "Beijing-flavor Kitchen" area, apart from tasting traditional Beijing snacks like bingtanghulu (sugar-coated haws on sticks) and lvdagun (glutinous rice rolls with sweet bean paste), children could also learn the craft of making gezhihe (a deep-fried crispy flour snack). In the "Autumn's Tea Party" area, Zhang Yiyuan Tea Co., Ltd. arranged exquisite tea settings. Children learned the art of tea ceremony and served their parents their brewed Chinese tea, which made this weekend in golden autumn more memorable and filled with a lingering charm. Some active children tried kicking shuttlecocks and playing with diabolos (a traditional Chinese toy).

(Source: Beijing Daily)