Consuls in Guangzhou Celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year

 
The Guangdong Foreign Affairs Office held a Lunar New Year reception at the Baiyun International Convention Center in Guangzhou last Friday night (Feb. 5th). Hundreds of foreign consuls stationed in Guangzhou were at the party to celebrate the upcoming festival. As usual in these official functions there were singing performances, people could try out their calligraphy skills, learn paper-cutting and many other Chinese art crafts. After the banquet, the consuls were requested to attend a performance by the Guangdong Modern Dance Company called "Meeting in Guangdong 2010."

The provincial authorities were delighted by the party. The Director General of the Guangdong Foreign Affairs Office, Mr. Fu Lang, addressed the audience and said he was happy to see more and more consulates open in Guangzhou, in particular the newly established consulates general of Israel, Spain, Ethiopia, Argentina and Ecuador.

The Consul General for Switzerland, Werner E. Nievergelt, was hoping about the up-coming year: "This year is the year of the tiger, and I am a tiger too. We consuls will have a lot of work as tigers do."

 
(Reported by Shanna Chu, David Keyton)

中文版 Chinese version