Overseas Chinese attend holiday celebration in Iran

TEHRAN — Chinese people in Iran gathered on Tuesday at the Chinese embassy in Tehran, decorated with such festive elements as red lanterns, to welcome the upcoming Spring Festival, the biggest annual celebration for most Chinese.

Nearly 100 overseas Chinese in Iran, including students studying in Iranian universities, teachers from the Confucius Institute, and representatives from Chinese enterprises and media institutions, attended the celebration that featured songs and dances, poetry recitations, and a Taijiquan (shadow boxing) demonstration.

He Qiaoling, an overseas Chinese in Iran, says her most prominent feeling was happiness, and being together with compatriots made her "emotional".

"This event conveyed the warmth from my motherland," said Wang Danyu, a teacher at the Confucius Institute at Tehran University, adding that it was like "celebrating Spring Festival at home".

Wang Xinhua, also a Confucius Institute teacher, gave a performance of Taijiquan, a Chinese martial art, and received a warm welcome from the audience.

"It is a great honor to be able to showcase traditional culture," Wang Xinhua says, adding that though in a foreign country, the singing and dancing created a "strong hometown and festival atmosphere".

China's Ambassador to Iran Chang Hua said in his speech that he hopes the Chinese compatriots in Iran will continue to love China, support the development of their motherland, and make more contributions to deepening China-Iran practical cooperation and expanding people-to-people exchanges.

During the get-together, the ambassador and his wife also distributed Spring Festival kits to the representatives of overseas Chinese groups, and presented children with panda dolls, pop-up books and other gifts. They also introduced celebration traditions to the children and led them to experience one such activity by pasting Spring Festival couplets beside the door. The children, who were born or have lived in Iran for a long time, were overjoyed. Many hugged the gifts they received with smiles on their faces, and even asked to sleep with panda dolls after returning home. Though having lived in another country, they keep learning about Chinese culture, as many volunteered to recite Chinese poems on the stage.

After the get-together, Bai Teng, a Chinese student, said that "the task of students is to learn useful knowledge and skills", expressing his determination to "contribute to China-Iran friendship and the development of our motherland".

Li Xuanxuan, another student, wished his motherland prosperity.

Meanwhile, Li Mei, the Chinese director of the Confucius Institute at Tehran University, says, "I received love from the motherland through the event, and wish the motherland prosperity and a better tomorrow."