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2017 Beijing International Youth Festival Launched
Youth encouraged to visit the capital and experience the abundance of attractions it offers
By Francisco Little  ·2017-07-21
African students from Beijing University of Technology perform at the opening ceremony (WEI YAO)

The usually quiet interior of China Railway Museum in Beijing came alive on July 20 with the opening ceremony of the 2017 Beijing International Youth Festival. Against a background of coal black steam trains and avocado green diesel locomotives that give a glimpse into rail travel of the past, the festival was launched by Yu Ganqian, Director of Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development.

2017 Beijing International Youth Festival is aimed at taking advantage of the Belt and Road Initiative and the opportunities it brings to tourism. The numbers show that tourism is on the rise.

"Beijing welcomed 285 million tourists in 2016, representing a 4.6-percent increase compared to 2015. This translated into a total revenue of $74.3 billion," said Yu.

In May this year the Beijing successfully organized the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, which further emphasized the city's important position as a center for international exchange.

The opening ceremony of the 2017 Beijing International Youth Festival at the China Railway Museum (WEI YAO)

In this context, the festival is themed "Co-Building the Silk Road and Co-Sharing the Chinese Dream." It will run until the end of August and comprise of activities centered on five major sub-themes: Bridge of Civilization, Openness, Prosperity, Innovation and Peace.

Overseas students in China who take part in the festival will have the opportunity to experience not only traditional historic culture, which includes everything from Peking Opera performances to fine Chinese cuisine, but also the convenience of travel on the country's modern high-speed rail network within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei zone.

Present at the launch were students invited from the Beijing University of Technology (BJUT), which is the co-organizer along with the Beijing Culture and Creative Technology Co. Ltd.

One of the students, Peter Tettey Yamak, 30, who hails from Ghana and is studying computer science in BJUT, said he was looking forward to the festival activities as it would help him get an overview of Chinese culture, more than just learning the language.

"I see the festival as an eye opener for me to get into the culture and know what China is - as they say seeing is believing," He said, adding that he has not been to many places around the city. "This was a great opportunity."

The brightly dressed group of African BJUT students showed off their dancing and singing skills in a performance that delighted the opening ceremony audience.

Yu reached out to welcome more overseas students, travel gurus and young tourists to participate in the Festival activities and explore Beijing.

"We also hope our young friends will become ambassadors of friendship for the Belt and Road cultural, tourist and civil exchanges," he said.

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