FROM MYSTERIOUS LAND TO GRASSROOTS TOPIC
China, in the recent couple of years, paid more and more attention to introducing its culture to the outside world. Before that, foreigners knew very little about the vast land, said Rios, the Spanish China hand.
China opened a large number of unofficial Confucius Institutes all over the world to promote Chinese language and culture, he said.
These institutes created unprecedented opportunities for China and other countries to communicate and enhance mutual understanding and mutual trust, he added.
More and more intellectual elite in the world, Berggruen included, have begun to understand that the political system of China should be based on its culture which is several thousand years old and profound and powerful.
The West should pay more respect to the Chinese culture, its path of development, as well as its achievements, Berggruen said.
Furthermore, the Chinese culture, reflected partly by Chinese products and food among others, influences the life of more and more common people overseas. To them, the vast land in the East is no longer mysterious.
Alexander Frolov, headmaster of a Russian school specialized in training Ded Moroz, which literally means Grandfather Frost, the Russian analogue of the Santa Claus, said at New Year's Day that he wishes a lasting friendship between the Russian and Chinese peoples.
Busiest line in Beijing: Subway line 10 has reached a daily transportation of 1 million passengers on average