As the Spring Festival, or the Chinese New Year, is just around the corner, people across China are welcoming the Year of the Horse with time-honored traditions, vibrant folk performances and joyous community gatherings.
In Songyang County, east China's Zhejiang Province, the ancient cliff-side village of Chenjiapu is dressed in festive red, with giant Spring Festival couplets and red lanterns adorning the rammed earth walls.
Perched at an average altitude of 850 meters with an elevation drop of over 200 meters, the 600-year-old settlement glows with festive atmosphere, drawing visitors to enjoy the picturesque scene.
For the Chinese people, Hanging Spring Festival couplets, or Chunlian in Chinese, on doors and walls is a common and important custom when they are celebrating the Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 17 this year.
In Hanchuan City, central China's Hubei Province, local residents and tourists gathered together in the old town to enjoy a variety of intangible cultural heritage performances.
Thirteen historic streets in the old town have been given a complete makeover, with renovation works wrapping up in early January this year. With resurfaced roads, repaired walkways and upgraded lighting systems throughout the area, the streets have become a vibrant gathering place.
"The dragon dance, lion dance, clam shell dance and land boat dance are so lively and exciting. This is the liveliest scene I have seen in years. It truly makes me happy," said local resident Fang Zhichun.
By the Hanjiang River, the largest tributary of the Yangtze River, a drone light show transformed the night sky into a canvas, with formations in the shape of dragon, and phoenix. Meanwhile, a fireworks display in the area drew cheers from the audience, in anticipation of a prosperous new year.
In Jiangyin City, east China's Jiangsu Province, Changjiang Village, one of the richest villages in the country, held its annual Spring Festival gala on Saturday evening.
The venue was festively decorated, as thousands of villagers gathered to enjoy traditional food and performances, celebrating the upcoming festival together.
"I married into Changjiang Village, and I heard it was always incredibly lively here during the Spring Festival. Now I'm experiencing it myself. It has quite a festive atmosphere," said Gao Fei, a local resident.
People across China celebrate Spring Festival with traditions
People across China celebrate Spring Festival with traditions
South China's Guangdong Province is accelerating its transformation into an international medical tourism hub, positioning itself as a destination for patients worldwide seeking affordable, high-quality care.
The push follows a joint initiative announced in late March by nine Chinese government departments, including the Ministry of Commerce, aimed at boosting spending by foreign tourists and enhancing exports of tourism services as part of broader efforts to expand the country's service sector.
Every day, some of the most complex surgeries are performed here. Li Zilun, deputy director of the division of vascular surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat‑sen University, is among the doctors capable of carrying out these intricate procedures.
He recently completed surgery on a patient with an aortic aneurysm, a condition often described as a "time bomb" in the body’s main artery, increasingly common in aging societies around the globe. Li also specializes in highly difficult and pioneering procedures, including repairing leaks caused by failed grafts.
"This was a very challenging case. And then, we implanted the covered stent to eliminate the endoleak. Actually, the outcome was pretty good. The patient will be discharged today," said Li Zilun.
The ability to handle such complex cases -- combining international techniques with domestically produced devices -- is drawing patients from around the world to seek treatment. In addition, high safety standards and low costs are also major draws.
"Our government is encouraging innovation. So, lots of physicians -- including our vascular surgeons -- we are actively involved in the innovation that helps to increase the effectiveness and safety, and also bring down the cost," said Li.
This hospital is one of the first in Guangdong to be designated by the provincial health commission as a pilot site for building an international medical service hub.
The growing number of patients has pushed the hospital to explore new ways to transform every step -- from treatment to payment and everything in between -- into a seamless experience, reducing waiting times and delivering better care for patients.
"I think it's fast. When the patient come here for just about, I think, one week, you can solve the problem," said Xiao Haipeng, president of the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University.
The hospital is also deepening its international cooperation with top-tier medical institutions, including those at Harvard University.
"Not just for China, for the whole globe, we are facing health care challenges -- emerging infectious disease and chronic, lung infectious diseases, and also the aging population, also the shortage of healthcare workforce," said Xiao.
In response to these challenges, China is promoting its own solutions, including aggressive innovation in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven workflows, while stepping up research and development investment and global engagement along the way.
"In recent years, the innovation in Western medicine is dramatically growing. An example of my hospital -- in the past few years, we have 140 innovations and seven of them are international leading innovations," said Xiao.
As global demand for medical tourism grows, China is positioning itself as a new destination. Official data shows that the number of foreign patients in Guangdong increased by 20 percent last year. Among them, the growth in inpatient admissions was even faster, rising by 76 percent.
Guangdong fast-tracks pilot for int'l medical service hub
