ISLAMABAD: Two lectures on Wuhan city, as well as a Chinese puppet show and photography exhibition, were held at the China Cultural Centre on Wednesday on the second day of cultural gala at the Pakistan National Council of Arts.

The gala was organised to mark the Pakistan-Wuhan Tourism and Culture Week, held between June 17 and June 21 to promote cultural and tourism links between the two countries.

In his opening remarks, the Chinese cultural consularsaid that a Wuhan culture and tourism show is organised in 120 countries to highlight the city’s historical importance and its cultural and tourism potential.

He encouraged Pakistanis to visit the city to experience its beauty and development.

Wuhan Municipal Museum curator Prof Liu Qingping gave a lecture at the event on ‘Our City, Our Homeland’, assisted by translator Wang Shan, an assistant professor who is completing her PhD. He is also adjunct professor at Wuhan University, Hubei University and Jianghan University.

Mr Liuspoke about Wuhan’s 3000-year history, evolution and culture, and its transformation into an industrial and transportation hub in central China.

He also discussed the city’s geographical importance using a slideshow presentation and maps, showing that Wuhan is crossed by maritime, river, rail and road transportation routes from almost every direction.

The city was designated a Creative City by Unesco in the field of design, as classified as a Beta world city by the Globalisation and World Cities Research Network.

Zhuang Yuan, the director of the Wuhan People’s Arts Theatre’s Puppet Show Art Centre spoke about the the ‘Chinese Puppet Show’, explaining the history, development and types of Chinese puppet shows.

A member of the China Theatre Association and China Puppetry and Shadow Arts Association, he also demonstrated the charm of puppeteering through photos, assisted by translator Wang Shan.

On the first day of the gala, Adviser to the Prime Minister Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan was invited as chief guest and arrived an hour late.

Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing spoke in his opening remarks about the tourism potential of Wuhan and Swat, Naran and other beautiful valleys in Pakistan. He praised the government’s initiatives to promote tourism in Pakistan.

Ambassador Yaonoted the common heritage of ancient civilisations of the two countries and hoped that Pakistani tourism authorities would organise a similar show in China to highlight the Gandhara civilisation, which he said was a shining jewel in the crown of Asian civilisation in the subcontinent that could be major attraction for Chinese tourists.

The ambassador also touched on the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, saying: “Previously we had focused on infrastructure projects and now we are entering into a new phase of the project with a focus on people-to-people contact through sightseeing and tourism which will occupy major importance in the cooperation.”

He said they were developing cross-border tourism packages for Chinese tourists, particularly in the northern areas of Pakistan. T

hey are also developing packages for cultural tourism for Swat, Taxila, Peshawar, other Gandhara civilisation heritage sites and historical sites in Lahore and other areas to help people better understand each other.

He said: “China is always open to Pakistani tourists. We have a lot of resources and sites waiting for Pakistani tourists.”

The performance segment of the gala included a Chinese folk music performance, a magic show, an excerpt from the famous folk taleThe Goddess of Heaven Scatters Flowers, a contemporary dance titled ‘Duo Dance: Pursuit of the Heart’ and a puppet show titled ‘Butterfly Lovers’, which is derived from a tragic love story.

One of the most interesting performances was by ventriloquist Sun Zhongjiang depicting the life of Wuhan as a metropolis.

Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2019