On October 19, the 19th International Cultural Festival, part of the series of events "Study at ECNU, Glorious 60 Years of International Education", was held at ECNU's Putuo Campus.
The stage at the national culture showcase was filled with non-stop excitement. A variety of performances featuring unique dances and music took turns to be staged. The lively dance moves and syncopated melodies instantly immersed the audience in a global cultural journey. The atmosphere at the event was extremely enthusiastic. Audience members strolled through various booths with specially made "passports", enjoying an immersive experience of the customs and cultures of different countries.
Ding Mengxiang from Turkey, who was in charge of the Turkish booth, was participating in the cultural festival for the second time. She excitedly shared, "The scene of my first participation in the Mini Expo is still vivid in my mind. It was the first time I truly felt the open, inclusive and vibrant international atmosphere of ECNU. Seeing students from all over the world showcase their respective cultures on stage has further strengthened my dream of spreading culture and promoting communication."
"2018 marked the beginning of my connection with ECNU's Cultural Festival," recalled Ma Xin, the person in charge of the Moroccan booth. That year, when he first arrived at the campus, he was not fluent in Chinese and had no other Moroccan compatriots around him. However, hoping to well represent his motherland, he stayed up late for several consecutive nights to carefully prepare traditional Moroccan food and distinctive booth decorations. Initially, he thought this would be a tiring experience, but when he saw the audience gathering around the booth with curious questions, and the moment they tasted couscous for the first time with bright eyes, he immediately fell in love with this special campus festival. What made it even more unforgettable for him was the "global integration" at the cultural festival: he took a bowl of tom yum goong from a Thai classmate, then turned around to take a Mexican taco; he danced hand in hand with students from various countries to the music, and even though his steps were unsteady, his smile never faded. For all Chinese and international students, this cultural festival is a precious memory full of laughter.
As night fell, the themed art performance celebrating the 60th anniversary of international student enrollment kicked off amid everyone's anticipation. The inspiring drumbeats instantly ignited the on-site atmosphere.
In 1965, when the first group of Vietnamese international students set foot on this land, ECNU embarked on its journey of internationalized education. Over the past 60 years, ECNU has witnessed countless international students come with dreams then return home with a profound understanding of Chinese culture. From the initial 210 international students to more than 3,100 current international students from over 110 countries every year, ECNU has always adhered to the concept of openness and inclusiveness. It has demonstrated its responsibility as a leading university in serving the country's overall opening-up strategy and contributed its wisdom to deepening cultural and people-to-people exchanges between China and other countries.
Author：Xincheng
Copy editor: Philip Nash Editor: Wicky
