With the promotion of visa-free policies and the continuous spread of Chinese culture on foreign social media platforms, from "TT Refugee" to "Becoming Chinese," more and more foreigners are no longer content with just watching Chinese short-videos and dramas on their phones. Instead, they are buying tickets to embark on a journey to China. Among them, coming to China to celebrate the Chinese New Year has become a cultural rendezvous for foreigners.

On the morning of February 8, 13 international students from Zhejiang University of Technology – hailing from countries such as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Bangladesh, Jordan, Indonesia, and Turkmenistan – arrived at Jin'eshan Village in Kangqian Sub-district, Deqing County, Zhejiang Province. They were soon immersed in the local Chinese New Year customs and intangible cultural heritage.

Led by the old masters of the village's dragon-dance team, the students held the dragon-dance poles and followed the rhythm of the gongs and drums, imitating the steps of the teachers. With the resounding drumbeats, the dragon's body rose and fell, and in the process of tumbling and leaping, the international students felt the vitality of this traditional Chinese folk art. 

The Mulberry-Leaf Dragon, with its "scales" made of green mulberry leaves, represents the local sericulture, making an appearance at a warm-up performance during the opening ceremony of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games in the "Big Lotus" stadium. "It looks easy, but actually the dragon is very heavy to dance with. The dragon-dance masters are very strong," said Maisha, a girl from Bangladesh.

Besides dragon-dancing, the international students also experienced creating rubbings of the Chinese character "Fu" (happiness), making nian gao (rice cakes). They discovered that rice dominates the Jiangnan landscape and its cuisine: nian gao rice cakes, fluffy mi gao fritters, and chewy yuanzi dumplings are all edible signatures of the rice-growing Hang-Jia-Hu Plain.

"Zi la." The golden syrup slowly flowed from the copper ladle and took shape on the silver metal plate. A few seconds later, a vivid sunflower bloomed on the stone slab, and the sugar threads shone like amber in the sun. "I had a great experience. Before, all my knowledge of Chinese culture came from TV. This is my first time celebrating the Chinese New Year in China. There are many interesting activities during the Spring Festival, and we had a lot of fun," said Jennia, a female student from Kyrgyzstan.

In the bustling New Year goods fair, the international students walked through the stalls, interacting with the stall owners in Chinese to learn more about the various New Year goods on offer. This unique Spring Festival folk-custom journey allowed the international students to absorb the festive atmosphere of Chinese New Year.

In recent years, Kangqian sub-district has relied on the international resources of Zhejiang University of Technology to deepen local educational cooperation. "In the future, we will invite more international students to visit Chinese villages, making traditional New Year customs a real link between China and the world," said one local official. And as Chinese New Year continues to go global, overseas students welcomed the chance to embrace China's openness and inclusiveness firsthand – and witness its traditional culture being increasingly recognized worldwide.