38 Italian teachers and students travelled thousands of miles to Hai’an, to experience the beauty of the East——

By Miao Fan and Zhou Ruimeng

Recently, 38 teachers and students of Scuola Internazionale Italo Cinese travelled thousands of miles to Hai’an, together with students of its sister school Hai’an High-tech Zone Experimental Primary School, started a trip to discover Jianghai culture.

Scuola Internazionale Italo Cinese is located at Padua, an ancient city in Italy. After visiting Hai’an Museum, Ma Xiaohui, an Italian girl, told the reporter, ‘Hai’an is really a beautiful city with a long history.’

14-year-old overseas Chinese student Chen Xinya’s ancestral home is Wenzhou, Zhejiang. When Chen Xinya’s grandfather was young, they went to work in Italy. Now, although the whole family stays overseas, ‘Chinese taste’ is deeply rooted and unforgettable. ‘ Hai’an noodle can go with many ingredients. It’s just like what my grandparents cooked when I was a child.’ Chen Xinya said.

At the site of intangible cultural heritage experience, calligraphy, gourd pyrography, sachet, tie-dye, flower drum, dragon dance...guided by workers, Wang Zechuan, an Italian young fellow, experienced almost all the projects. ‘My favourite one is gourd pyrography!’ Wang Zechuan presented his work to the reporter. He said, ‘here, everything is wonderful and magical!’

Wanzan, an Italian teacher said that the modernization level of Hai’an school surprised her, ‘the school is very large. In the past week, we conducted many teaching activities with teachers in Hai’an. I am going to bring the experiences learnt here back to Italy, and implement them in my teaching and work.’

In 2023, Hai’an High-tech Zone Experimental Primary School and Scuola Internazionale Italo Cinese from Italy became sister schools. Scuola Internazionale Italo Cinese has worked on overseas Chinese education promotion in Italy, and education is a brilliant business card of Hai’an.

Li Xuemei, the principal of Scuola Internazionale Italo Cinese, said that the activity let them really feel the friendliness and hospitality of China, the land of ceremony and propriety, and refreshed the understanding and knowledge of China among Italian teachers, students and their parents who came to China for the first time.