BEIJNG: At many tourist attractions in China, red ribbons that bear visitors’ signatures and auspicious phrases, such as wishes for career success or a healthy family, are tied to trees, handrails and other objects for good luck.
The red ribbons proved popular on Saturday among a United States delegation of students from Muscatine High School in the US state of Iowa and their Chinese peers from Shijiazhuang Foreign Language School in Hebei province.
While gathering around a kiosk selling the red ribbons at Longxing Temple in Zhengding county, Hebei, the high-spirited students could be heard exclaiming “Look what I’ve got”,”Put it here”, or “I love this one!”
Known for its outstanding architecture, frescoes and stone sculptures, the famous Buddhist temple is a national-level cultural heritage protection site.
It has been well preserved, thanks to the efforts of people including President Xi Jinping when he was deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China’s Zhengding county committee in 1982-83 and secretary from 1983 to 1985.
At that time, Xi spent a great deal of time and energy to get a special fund allocated to the county for the restoration of ancient buildings and sites, including Longxing Temple.
Xi was also among those who worked on building the bonds between Zhengding and the Iowa city of Muscatine, as he led a five-person delegation to places including Muscatine during a visit to the US in 1985. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
