Recently, the Timaru District Council held the third South Canterbury International Festival at the Aoraki Polytechnic.
Recently, the Timaru District Council held the third South Canterbury International Festival at the Aoraki Polytechnic. There were more than 20 countries and ethnic groups represented, including China, Germany, Korean, Japan, India and Argentina. Janie Annear, the Mayor of Timaru, Li Yucai, the Education Consul and Xu Zhijie, the Cultural Consul from the Chinese Consulate General in Christchurch were present. Mr Li Yucai, on behalf of Madam Tan Xiutian the Consul General, gave a speech at the opening ceremony. In his speech, Mr Li reviewed the relationship between New Zealand and China and then expressed the hope that the festival would be successful.
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This was the first time that the Confucius Institute at the University of Canterbury (CIUC) had participated in the festival. As a reflection of the festival’s theme “family”, CIUC set up the exhibition room to reflect the structure of a traditional Chinese home, with five areas designated as ‘study’, ‘wardrobe’, ‘sitting room’, ‘dining room’ and a handcraft room for ‘paper-cutting and mask-painting’. Alongside traditional Chinese hand-made items exhibition, the Chinese room distinguished itself from the other houses by having many interactive activities. For example, visitors were able to use Chinese brushes to write their names, try on traditional Chinese clothes and taste-test Chinese tea and delicacies. They also were given the opportunity to try paper cutting and to paint Chinese opera masks. These activities allowed the visitors to experience Chinese culture for themselves, which enhanced both their learning and their enjoyment.
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The study was decorated in traditional style and the ‘four treasures of the study (writing brush, ink, inkstone, paper)’ were prominently displayed. A teacher was present to demonstrate the literary style of Chinese calligraphy by writing visitors’ names in Chinese. The Confucius Institute also supplied paper and brushes for the visitors to practice with. This display drew a crowd who all were keen to have their names written in Chinese. The resulting artworks impressed the participants, who then tried to imitate the brushstrokes themselves. A reporter from the Timaru Herald also requested that the teacher wrote the name of the newspaper in Chinese. Throughout the day, the queue to the study remained very long.
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The Wardrobe
China has the saying “56 ethnic groups, 56 blossoms, 56 ethnic groups make one family.” The wardrobe was developed around the idea of the big family in China. A poster displayed photos of the 56 ethnic groups in the shape of a ‘peace’ dove. At the same time, clothing from various ethnic groups was available for guests to try on and they could then take photos of themselves. There was one little girl, who, after putting on clothes of Xinjiang style, could not stop twirling around in her dress. She even learned instantly the typical neck movement in Xingjiang dance, which the audience enjoyed so much that the girl’s mother managed to take some special photos.
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The Sitting Room
A table was placed in the centre of the sitting room, with a tea set on it. Next to the table, there was a guzheng: a traditional Chinese stringed instrument. A volunteer demonstrated a traditional tea ceremony to the accompaniment of beautiful traditional Chinese music. The combination of the tea art demonstration and the music was very peaceful, and allowed the visitors to experience the grace of Chinese civilisation.
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The Kitchen
The Chinese people have an old saying “Nothing is more comfortable than lying down; nothing is more delicious than dumplings”. Dumplings have long become a representative of the well-known Chinese cuisine throughout the world. Besides stuffed buns, moon cakes and fried dough twists, the Chinese House also prepared some fried dumplings for sale. The smell of the dumplings attracted the visitors, and many of them came back for seconds. By the end of the day, “another bite, please” became the nickname of the Chinese kitchen.
The Handcraft Room
The Paper Cutting and Mask Painting area attracted the interest of a lot of children. The volunteers taught the children how to paint masks and cut paper-cuts. The children paid close attention to the explanations, and were eager to have a try themselves. Not long after they had worked at them for a bit, they were able to create charming pandas, lifelike goldfish and pretty window adornments. The children were also able to paint traditional Chinese opera masks. These activities increased the children’s interest in China.