The China Media Group (CMG) sent to France its second batch of broadcast equipment dedicated to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games from Xi'an of northwestern province of Shaanxi early on Saturday.
A China-Europe freight train set off from the Xi'an Guojigang Railway Station at 03:55, carrying a total of 79 pieces of broadcast gear, such as media servers, advertising machines and lighting control devices, which will be used for covering the upcoming global sporting event by the CMG.
The train will first reach Germany's Duisburg en route to the designated Olympic venues in Paris in a 16-day journey.
Saturday's shipment comes after the CMG sent its first batch of 1,256 pieces of broadcast equipment to France, as there are fewer than eight weeks to go for the grand opening of the Summer Games.
As a major part of the CMG lineup, broadcast vans capable of delivering 4K/8K ultra-high-definition content transmission have arrived at the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in east China's Zhejiang Province, ready to set off for Paris in the coming days.
Last October, the CMG and the Paris 2024 Olympic Organizing Committee signed a strategic cooperation agreement on deepening cooperation in the promotion of the Paris Olympics and the production of related programs.
The opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will take place on July 26, with the French capital breaking with tradition to host the extravaganza outside of a stadium for the very first time.
More CMG broadcast equipment en route to France for Paris Olympics
The Macao Special Administrative Region is aiming to attract more international visitors after winning the title of "Culture City of East Asia 2025", with the city setting its sights on becoming a major global tourism destination.
Though the award was unveiled earlier this month, the formal announcement of the designation will take place in September, when the 15th Trilateral Cultural Ministers' Meeting will be held in Japan.
As a unique destination that preserves a multi-cultural heritage, a full calendar of festivals, and a wide array of delights to suit all tastes, Macao is already a popular choice for many travelers.
"The people are very easygoing and friendly. The food is also very good," said Zhang Naiyue, a visitor from the Chinese mainland.
One of the must-see spots is an area known as "the Historic Center of Macao", which was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2005 and features over 20 monuments and urban squares in the heart of the city.
"It's a very nice city, very welcoming. So far, the people are super friendly with me. It's very nice with a lot of history as well," said Delfim Ribeiro, a tourist from Portugal.
In the first five months of this year, over 14 million tourist arrivals were recorded in Macao, a 50-percent year-on-year increase, and after being confirmed as a Culture City of East Asia, the regional government is now aiming to entice even more visitors from all around the world.
"This year the target is for 33 million, so we hope that going forwards we will be able to attract obviously more visitors, but the most important part is not only attracting our Greater China visitors. I would say we have an objective to attract more international visitors to make Macao really what we call a world center of tourism and leisure," said Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, director of Macao Government Tourism Office.
Following the challenges of the pandemic, Macao is looking to maintain its steady rate of recovery in the tourism sector and hopes that next year will see a return to the previous peaks.
"This year, our aim for international visitors is over two million, which is still a little bit away from what we used to have - three million back in 2019. But we hope that by 2025, the numbers of international visitors will get back to three million," said Senna Fernandes.
The Culture City of East Asia program is an art and culture event launched by China, Japan, and South Korea. Each year, the three nations will designate either one or two cities from each country for the title, which aims to promote cultural exchanges and cooperation.
Macao aims to attract more int'l visitors after winning "Culture City of East Asia 2025"
