A group of 80 students and teachers from the U.S. state of Washington wrapped up a four-day visit to southwest China's Guizhou Province on Wednesday, with the activity-packed trip helping deepen their understanding of Chinese culture and promoting cultural exchanges and mutual understanding between the two sides.
During their visit to Taijiang County on Tuesday, the American students learned about a traditional reed-pipe wind instrument called the 'Lusheng', which features predominantly in the music of the Miao people and the wooden drum dance, a folk dance popular among the ethnic group. They also enjoyed a bite of the tasty Guizhou sour fish soup, local rice wine and experienced other diverse intangible cultural heritage from the area.
"It (Lusheng) is a very interesting instrument. I never knew about it until I came here and learned about it. And I really like it because it's pretty simple. It's like pretty easy to learn and I love the sound of it. It's really amazing," said Cryan McKee, a student from Tri-Cities High School.
"The most impressive for me, I would say that being able to gather here today and being able to experience [real culture] with the cooking, and I believe it was the sour soup that we learned to cook as well as joining in the drum dancing as well. That was something that was extremely special," said Rowan Hinds, a student from the Science and Math Institute in Tacoma.
Later on Tuesday evening, two basketball matches between local residents and the U.S. students gathered many tourists and neighboring villagers around the court to enjoy the fun international face-off amid a friendly atmosphere.
In addition, the young students also visited another picturesque village in the rural heart of Guizhou's Leishan County to experience the charm of local food and the ethnic Miao culture.
Organizers say the group are enjoying a comprehensive tour of China, helping to build bridges and friendships between the two peoples which they hope will have a lasting impact on these young participants.
"This time they would visit places, like Guizhou, Sichuan, Shandong, Beijing. The trip may allow them to plant a seed of Sino-US friendship from a young age and then gradually nurture them into strong pillars that will actively contribute to the robust and stable development of Sino-U.S. relation," said Shen Xin, vice president of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.
US students sample local ethnic culture in tour of southwest China's Guizhou
A severe hunger crisis continues to afflict the massive displaced population in the war-torn Gaza Strip, as the year-long Israel-Hamas conflict persists and humanitarian access remains largely restricted.
On the World Food Day, which falls annually on Oct 16, Palestinians in the Strip, who have endured a brutal year of conflict, still face a desperate lack of food and are forced to cope with hunger every day.
The Israeli military launched another large-scale assault on northern Gaza on Oct 6, ordering hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to evacuate. Meanwhile, a strict siege and blockade were imposed on the area. According to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the main crossing into northern Gaza has been nearly closed, with no food aid allowed in since Oct 1.
At present, many WFP-supported local bakeries are forced to close due to food shortages. The WFP warns that remaining supplies in northern Gaza are extremely limited and uncertain in duration, especially for local residents who fled sudden attacks by the Israeli military, carrying very little food with them.
"The entire world is calling for an end to hunger, but we're dealing with famine and being hungry every single day, and things are getting worse. We hope things will get better, but we always find ourselves back in famine. More than 10 days ago, the Israeli army took over northern Gaza again, making the famine even worse. We had to leave Beit Hanoun (a city on the northeast edge of the Gaza Strip) and walk to Gaza City with our children, women, and seniors to find shelter," said Walid, a displaced Palestinian in northern Gaza.
Fahd, another displaced man, expressed his anger and helplessness, saying he has survived on canned food for months without any fresh vegetables or meat. With food aid access closed and famine looming, the situation in Gaza is worsening.
"I am suffering from hunger right now. It has been eight months since I last ate a tomato or any other vegetables. I have forgotten their taste. Without vegetables and fruits, I can't even remember if bananas are yellow or red anymore. We only have canned food, and haven't seen any vegetables and meat," said Fahd.
Now, malnutrition is rising sharply among young children and breastfeeding mothers in Gaza, with infants being the most vulnerable victims of the ongoing food crisis.
"Last week, I completed a survey on 600 children and their mothers. Sadly, I found out that 20 percent of the children are mildly malnourished, 10 percent are severely malnourished, and 16 percent are moderately malnourished. It's not just about numbers. We're talking about a childhood disaster here. We're discussing children who can't find food daily, who go to bed hungry and in tears," said Saeed Saleh, medical director of Patient's Friends Hospital in Gaza City.
Alongside the high risk of famine, the Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks in Gaza has reached 42,344 since the outbreak of the latest round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict on October 7, 2023, according to a statement from health authorities in the region on Tuesday.
Hunger crisis haunts Gaza's displaced
Hunger crisis haunts Gaza's displaced
