By Bo Ning & Liu Yichen

Qianjiang Cao Yu Park 潛江曹禺公園

A new crayfish season hits!

A bright crayfish red can be seen all over Qianjiang, a garden city and lake town in Hubei Province.

June 15, 2019, marks the grand opening of the 10th Qianjiang International Crayfish Festival and the 3rd Crayfish and Rice Industry Expo. Qianjiang proudly announced to the world, “Qianjiang Crayfish, a Feast for the World!”

The crayfish industry in Qianjiang has been forming an entire industrial chain—ranging from basic breeding and cooking, to scientific research and demonstration, selective breeding, larval rearing, production and processing, deep processing, cold-chain logistics, warehouse storage, catering logistics, festival culture, as well as travel and leisure attractions, signaling its hard power and decisive discourse in this field. Qiangjiang City has been honored as “The Hometown of Crayfish,” “The Town of Crayfish Delicacies,” “The Town of Crayfish-Rice,” and “The First City of Crayfish Processing and Exporting” in China—which demonstrates the popularity of its crayfish both at home and abroad.

Over the past 19 years, the Qianjiang crayfish industry has developed from scratch and blossomed through years of hard work and continuous efforts. At the age of 19, Qianjiang’s crayfish industry is a youth in its prime, with a bright future ahead.

Qianjiang is now carrying out a global strategy to make its crayfish a feast for the world.

A glimpse of a crayfish-rice farming field in Qianjiang 潛江蝦稻共作基地一瞥

又是一年龍蝦季。

中國湖北省的水鄉(xiāng)園林城市潛江，早已滿城蝦紅。

2019年6月15日，第十屆湖北潛江國際龍蝦節(jié)暨第三屆蝦稻產(chǎn)業(yè)博覽會盛大開幕。潛江向全球響亮發(fā)出“潛江龍蝦，世界共享”的聲音！

從簡單的養(yǎng)殖烹飪，到集科研示范、良種選育、苗種繁育、生態(tài)種養(yǎng)、生產(chǎn)加工、精深加工、冷鏈物流、交易倉儲、餐飲物流、節(jié)慶文化和旅游休閑于一體的完整產(chǎn)業(yè)鏈，彰顯著潛江小龍蝦產(chǎn)業(yè)的硬實力與話語權(quán)。“中國小龍蝦之鄉(xiāng)”“中國小龍蝦美食之鄉(xiāng)”“中國蝦稻之鄉(xiāng)”“中國小龍蝦加工出口第一市”……潛江小龍蝦成了國內(nèi)外市場的寵兒。

19年，潛江龍蝦從無到有，久久為功。19歲，潛江小龍蝦產(chǎn)業(yè)正如青春妙齡，風(fēng)華正茂，漸入佳境。

潛江正實施走出去戰(zhàn)略，讓世界共享潛江龍蝦。

How does Qianjiang employ the tiny crayfish into the logo of the City and a feast for the whole world?

In order to unveil the mystery, Special Focus co-organized with the College of International Cultural Exchange of Central China Normal University a special trip to Qianjiang for international students interested in the industry.

In the early morning of June 15, more than 20 international students from 20 different countries, including Russia, Brazil, Tajikistan, Indonesia, South Korea, Ghana, Saudi Arabia, and Azerbaijani, embarked on a oneday trip to Qianjiang. Along the way, they observed the City with their own eyes, and obtained onthe-spot experience about the local crayfish industry, crayfish-rice industry, and the unique culture of the region. Everyone exclaimed that the trip was both inspiring and rewarding.

A Beautiful City on the Green Jianghan Plain

During the two-hour bus trip on the boundless Jianghan plain, the green fields, clean rivers and quiet ponds, plus a few highspeed rails and expressways could be appreciated from outside the bus window. “Qianjiang is not a populous city, but rather a quiet one with many striking views,” said Ibrahim MD from Chittagong, Bangladesh, “There is the Karnaphuli River running across Chittagong, just like the Han River that crosses through Qianjiang. Another common thing between the two cities is that they both process aquatic products for exporting to the world.”

Seong Suyeong from South Korea used colors to describe Qianjiang and her hometown of Cheonan, “If I were to link my hometown Cheonan and Qianjiang with a certain color, I would say that gray is for Cheonan and green for Qianjiang. Cheonan has many high-rise buildings, and is heading towards urbanization. Although urbanization makes our life more convenient, it turns the whole city gray. Yet, there are still lots of farmlands in Qianjiang, so it is greener than Cheonan. The green environment puts me at ease.”

Ahmad Jupriyadi is from Situbondo Regency, Indonesia. Qianjiang reminded him of his hometown where there are vast fields. He said that there were lots of similarities between Qianjiang and Situbondo, particularly the natural views and stretches of fields, but the only difference is that Qianjiang is a bit more developed than Situbondo.

Overseas students in the China Crayfish Trade Center (Photos by Chen Gongzezu & Su Zhuolin) 留學(xué)生們參觀中國小龍蝦交易中心（陳龔澤祖、蘇卓琳 攝）

小城潛江，是如何將一只小小的龍蝦打造成城市名片，成為世界共享的美味佳肴的？

為了解開這道謎題，6月15日，本刊編輯部聯(lián)合華中師范大學(xué)國際文化交流學(xué)院，為留學(xué)生們組織了一次特殊的潛江學(xué)習(xí)考察之旅。

來自俄羅斯、巴西、塔吉克斯坦、印度尼西亞、韓國、加納、沙特、阿塞拜疆等20多個國家的20余名留學(xué)生，一大早便踏上奔赴潛江的旅程，直到下午6點多才回到校園，一路觀察潛江城市風(fēng)貌，親身體驗當(dāng)?shù)氐男↓埼r產(chǎn)業(yè)、蝦稻產(chǎn)業(yè)和獨特文化，大家感觸良多，都認(rèn)為不虛此行。

綠色原野上的美麗城市

大巴在廣闊的江漢平原上奔馳了兩個多小時，窗外綠色的田野、河流、池塘和偶爾出現(xiàn)的高速鐵路、高速公路美輪美奐。來自孟加拉的易卜拉辛·穆德（Ibrahim MD）說：“潛江人口密度不大，是一座安靜的城市，擁有許多美麗的風(fēng)景。”他的家鄉(xiāng)是孟加拉國的吉大港，他說，吉大港有卡巴福里河流過，就像漢江流過潛江一樣。兩個城市共同之處還在于，都加工水產(chǎn)品出口全球。

來自韓國的美麗女孩成修英（Seong Suyeong）用顏色來形容潛江和她的家鄉(xiāng)天安的不同：“用顏色表現(xiàn)我的故鄉(xiāng)天安市和潛江市，天安市比較灰色，潛江市比較綠色。因為天安有很多高層建筑，逐漸城市化。雖然城市化使生活更加舒適，但城市比較灰色。然而潛江市還有很多田地，所以比天安更綠綠的。這綠綠的樣子給人一種很舒服的感覺。”

家鄉(xiāng)在印尼西都文羅市的艾哈邁德·居普里亞迪（Ahmad Jupriyadi），看到潛江想到了自己的家鄉(xiāng)，那里也有廣闊的田野。他說，潛江和西都文羅市有很多相似之處，尤其是風(fēng)景自然，原野連片，所不同的是，潛江比他的家鄉(xiāng)發(fā)展得相對好一些。

Wu Zuyun, Secretary of Qianjiang Municipal Party Committee, introduces Qianjiang Crayfish on the Qianjiang Crayfish Festival in Hong Kong 潛江市委書記吳祖云在香港潛江龍蝦節(jié)上推介潛江龍蝦

Qianjiang crayfish enjoyed by the staff of the United Nations 潛江龍蝦走進(jìn)聯(lián)合國

Qianjiang has long been reputed as a lake town and garden city on the Jianghan Plain. These international students easily felt its harmonious ecosystem and beautiful environment the moment they arrived.

A Well-deserved “Hometown of Crayfish”

“China leads the crayfish industries of the world, and Hubei Province plays the main role in Chinese crayfish industries while the City of Qiangjiang is the key figure of the industry in Hubei.” This is a perfect interpretation of the well-reputed Qianjiang City.

The first stop of the trip that day was the China Crayfish Trade Center in Houhu, Qianjiang. There the students learned about crayfish market information throughout the country, such as the selling price, trading volume, and market attention.

Then, there was a visit to the crayfish market. A massive amount of crayfish were crammed together in rows of big containers, waving their big claws. There were many sorters working in the market, weighing the crayfish on an electronic scale one by one, and loading them in different foam cartons according to their weight. Different grades of crayfish are packed in countless foam cartons, ready to be sent to all parts of China.

A sorter taught the students how to grab crayfish without getting clamped by their claws. The boys in the group managed to pick up the aggressive crayfish one after another, and took photos holding the crayfish between their fingers. Although the girls were a little scared, they couldn’t resist the urge to grab a crayfish and take a photo with it.

At the crayfish-breeding center, hundreds of contiguous breeding ponds were neatly arranged and filled with pipes inhabited by crayfish, with parental crayfish curling up either at the mouth of their own pipes or deep down in the middle—some of them fight with intruders in the nests. The students were so obsessed by the lively scene that they forgot the time while observing the movements of the crayfish.

Foreign students in the crayfish market (Photo by Su Zhuolin) 留學(xué)生們參觀小龍蝦交易市場（蘇卓琳 攝）

潛江被稱為江漢平原上的水鄉(xiāng)園林城市，這些來自世界各地的學(xué)子第一次來潛江，就感受到潛江生態(tài)和諧和環(huán)境優(yōu)美等突出特點。

“龍蝦之鄉(xiāng)”名不虛傳

“世界小龍蝦看中國，中國小龍蝦看湖北，湖北小龍蝦看潛江”，這是對潛江眾多美譽的完美詮釋。

留學(xué)生們先來到坐落在潛江后湖的中國小龍蝦交易中心。在這里，全國小龍蝦行情——價格、成交量和市場關(guān)注程度，一覽無余。

緊接著，大家又參觀了小龍蝦交易市場。海量的小龍蝦在一排大容器里揮舞著大螯，相互擠壓著。市場里有很多分揀員，她們把一只只小龍蝦放到電子秤上，根據(jù)小龍蝦的重量裝到不同的泡沫箱。無數(shù)的泡沫箱里已經(jīng)裝好各種品級的小龍蝦，準(zhǔn)備發(fā)往全國各地。

At the crayfish-breeding center, a technician explains the breeding of Australian crayfish (Photo by Su Zhuolin)在小龍蝦繁殖中心，技術(shù)員講解澳洲小龍蝦養(yǎng)殖（蘇卓琳 攝）

分揀員教留學(xué)生們?nèi)绾巫プ∥r而不被蝦螯夾住，男同學(xué)紛紛伸手抓起氣勢洶洶的大個頭蝦子拍照留念，惹得女同學(xué)心里癢癢的，也戰(zhàn)戰(zhàn)兢兢地抓起一只來拍一張。

在小龍蝦繁殖中心，幾百個繁育池連片排列，池中堆滿了供種龍蝦棲息的管子，一只只種蝦蜷伏在各自的管道口或深縮在管子里，有的還與前來爭巢的種蝦扭打起來?？粗@些鮮活的場面，留學(xué)生們禁不住貼近水池觀察起來。

終于到了品嘗潛江小龍蝦風(fēng)味的時間，大巴在宏大的潛江龍蝦城跟前的大道上掉了個頭，徑直來到潛陽城酒店。這是潛江龍蝦城里最大的一家潛江風(fēng)味餐館。知道有留學(xué)生來，總經(jīng)理孫學(xué)洪專門組織特色迎賓隊，敲鑼打鼓，載歌載舞，把我們迎進(jìn)“城”里。

Sun Xuehong, general manager of Qianyangcheng, demonstrates how to shell crayfish for foreign guests (Photo by Su Zhuolin)潛陽城總經(jīng)理孫學(xué)洪親自為留學(xué)生示范小龍蝦吃法（蘇卓琳 攝）

Finally, it was time to sample the famous Qianjiang crayfish. After taking a U-turn on the main road in front of the grand Qianjiang Crayfish City, the bus went straight to Qianyangcheng Restaurant, the biggest local restaurant. To welcome the guests from afar, General Manager Sun Xuehong organized a special team beating gongs and drums, singing and dancing to welcome them to the “Crayfish City.”

Four tables were already reserved for the group. Everyone took a seat, waiting for the fresh crayfish. In the blink of an eye, the neatly dressed waiters had served a dozen of dishes on the tables. Among them, four big plates of steamed crayfish, minced garlic crayfish, spiced crayfish, and braised crayfish made the student’s mouths water. Some of them couldn’t wait to start even before the waiters came back to their table to show how to shell the crayfish. In order to prevent everyone from getting cut by the shells, Mr. Sun and the waiters went to each table to offer guidance. Some of the students were eating crayfish for the first time. While learning to get the knack of shelling, they couldn’t help complimenting the fantastic taste of the crayfish and other dishes on the table.

We heard that there was a giant crayfish statue that was listed in The Guinness Book of World Records in the Crayfish City. As soon as the group left the restaurant, they rushed to the statue that is dozens of meters long, and took photos in front of it in spite of the scorching sun.

4個空桌已虛席以待，大家魚貫入座，靜待蝦鮮呈上來。服務(wù)員們著裝整齊，一溜煙就把十幾個菜上齊了。蒸蝦、蒜蓉蝦、鹵蝦和油燜大蝦，4大盤，盤盤誘人。不等服務(wù)員示范，留學(xué)生們早已迫不及待地吃開了。為了防止大家的手被蝦殼劃傷，孫總和服務(wù)員還挨桌進(jìn)行示范。許多頭一回嘗鮮的留學(xué)生，一邊學(xué)習(xí)要領(lǐng)，一邊對龍蝦和其他菜品贊不絕口。

聽說龍蝦城還有一座榮獲吉尼斯紀(jì)錄的小龍蝦雕塑，大家一出酒店就奔著那只十幾米長的小龍蝦雕塑而去，顧不得似火驕陽，紛紛在雕塑前合影留念。

來自阿塞拜疆的海達(dá)洛夫·西德拉蘇爾（Heydarov Seyidrasul）曾嘗試自己烹飪小龍蝦，可惜做得并不美味。在潛江品嘗到四種不同的龍蝦風(fēng)味，讓他心服口服，真是好吃得停不住口。巴西留學(xué)生約翰·維克多·馬丁內(nèi)茲（Jo?o Vitor Martinez）在家鄉(xiāng)也吃過小龍蝦，他說巴西的小龍蝦多用大蒜和啤酒燒制，不像這邊有這么多種烹飪方式。蒜蓉蝦讓他想起了家鄉(xiāng)的味道，而來自加納的納齊亞·易卜拉欣（Naazia Ibrahim）更喜歡香辣的油燜大蝦?！皩τ诔醮纬孕↓埼r的我們，（剝蝦）相當(dāng)于一次和小龍蝦的戰(zhàn)斗?！币撞防痢つ碌碌母袊@代表了許多初次享用小龍蝦的食客的心聲，“雖然我們浪費了很多小龍蝦，但很享受食用的過程。”回到大巴上，留學(xué)生們還在回味著小龍蝦的味道。

有機蝦稻米飯格外香

潛江人善于創(chuàng)新求變。這個原本以工業(yè)聞名的城市，憑空就發(fā)展起了小龍蝦這么大的一個產(chǎn)業(yè)，在“水鄉(xiāng)園林”的基礎(chǔ)上演繹出“中國小龍蝦之鄉(xiāng)”，然而，這種演繹還遠(yuǎn)沒有結(jié)束。潛江人在蝦產(chǎn)業(yè)的基礎(chǔ)上又延伸發(fā)展出“蝦稻共作”模式，活生生一個“蝦稻產(chǎn)業(yè)”儼然誕生，被稱為中國水稻種植的一次革命。

“‘蝦稻共作’變過去一年‘一稻一蝦’為‘一稻兩蝦’，畝產(chǎn)小龍蝦一躍上升到200公斤以上，稻谷600公斤以上，畝平均利潤超5000元，比單一種植水稻畝平均增收3000元以上?！r鄉(xiāng)稻’牌生態(tài)香米受市場熱捧，在湖北省農(nóng)業(yè)部門組織的水稻品質(zhì)檢測中，綜合指標(biāo)名列全省第一名。”在參觀中國小龍蝦交易中心時，解說員這樣介紹著。

留學(xué)生們圍著蝦稻米品牌，紛紛提問，這種米有什么不同。解說員說：“蝦稻共作，因為有蝦的存在，種植戶不能施用化肥和農(nóng)藥，稻谷的生長完全靠土壤和蝦的排泄物提供肥力，而病蟲害的防治主要靠生物防治（如養(yǎng)鴨等）和燈光誘殺等。”解說員還說，蝦鄉(xiāng)稻米每斤的價格在10元到30多元之間。留學(xué)生們發(fā)出一片贊嘆之聲，眼神里流露出品嘗一番的渴望。

在潛陽城酒店，孫總滿足了留學(xué)生們的愿望。他吩咐廚房專門蒸了蝦稻米飯。服務(wù)員端著米飯走過來時，一股濃香飄進(jìn)了我們的肺腑。細(xì)細(xì)咀嚼，軟硬適度又略帶彈性的口感，更令諸多初嘗這一美食的留學(xué)生停不下手中的筷子。

越南學(xué)生湯緣紅（Thong Duyen Hong）看著碗里晶瑩剔透的米飯粒兒，感到很神奇。她不知道米飯還可以這樣一碗一碗地蒸。“這種米飯感覺跟越南的米飯差不多，但我印象最深刻的是它的做法，很特別，讓我們吃的時候感覺到一股淡淡的香味。腦子不停地冒出疑問：這樣煮飯也會熟嗎？要多少大米、多少水？跟一般的做法差別在哪兒呢？一邊吃一邊想象，讓我覺得米飯更好吃。”

Heydarov Seyidrasul from Azerbaijani said that he once tried to cook crayfish himself, but it didn’t turn out tasty. The four different flavored crayfish he tried in Qianjiang were so delicious that he simply couldn’t stop eating, and his taste buds were completely conquered. Jo?o Vitor Martinez, a Brazilian, said that he had also tried crayfish in his hometown, but the crayfish in Brazil were mostly cooked with garlic and beer, unlike those in Qianjiang that boast so many ways of cooking. The minced garlic crayfish reminded Jo?o of his hometown, while Naazia Ibrahim from Ghana said that he preferred the spicy braised crayfish. “This is the first time I’ve tried crayfish, and shelling is like a battle with the meal,” Ibrahim MD’s comment spoke out the true feeling of many new eaters, “Although we wasted a lot of crayfish meat, we enjoyed the process of eating them.” When back on the bus, the aftertaste of crayfish was still lingering in the mouth of the students.

Fragrant Organic “Crayfish-Rice”

Qianjiang, a city originally known for its industry, has transformed into a city with a massive crayfish industry. With the geological advantages being a “waterside garden,” it has become “The Hometown of Crayfish in China.” Yet the legend is far from over. By relying on the crayfish industry, Qianjiang’s people innovated the “crayfish-rice farming” mode. A “crayfish-rice industry” was born, which was hailed as a revolutionized landmark in the history of China’s rice cultivation.

“The ‘Crayfish-rice farming’ mode has changed from a ‘one rice harvest and one crayfish harvest’ pattern to a ‘one rice harvest and two crayfish harvests’ pattern a year. The per mu (1 mu=666 square meters) yields of crayfish and rice have exceeded 200 kilograms and 600 kilograms, respectively. The per mu average profit margin has exceeded 5,000 yuan, which is more than 3,000 yuan higher than that from single cropping of middle-season rice. The ecologically grown fragrant rice with the brand name of “Rice from Crayfish’s Hometown” has become popular on the market. In the rice quality test organized by the Agricultural Department of Hubei Province, its comprehensive index ranked the first in the province,” the guide introduced to us during the visit to the Chinese Crayfish Trading Center.

The international students gathered around the guide and asked about what made this rice different. The guide explained, “In crayfish-rice farming, chemical fertilizers and pesticides cannot be employed due to the existence of crayfish. So rice growth depends entirely on fertility provided by soil and crayfish excreta. Plant diseases and insects are prevented and controlled mainly by biological means such as duck breeding as well as light traps. The price of ‘Rice from Crayfish’s Hometown’ is from 10 to more than 30 yuan per catty.” The students expressed their wonder and were eager to try the rice.

At Qianyangcheng Restaurant, Mr. Sun, the General Manager, provided the opportunity for the international students. He ordered the kitchen to steam some crayfish rice. When the waiter brought the rice, the air was filled with a strong aroma. Chewing the rice with moderate hardness and slight elasticity, the students enjoyed every bite.

Workers are processing crayfish in the workshop of Hubei Laker company 萊克公司工人正在進(jìn)行小龍蝦加工

文化底蘊豐厚獨特

潛江的文化底蘊非常深厚，章華臺就是一個很好的證明。章華臺是春秋時期楚靈王的離宮（帝王出巡或處理政務(wù)的地方），建成于公元前535年，史載章華臺為“舉國營之，數(shù)年乃成”的宏大建筑，被譽為當(dāng)時的“天下第一臺”，足見潛江歷史文化之久遠(yuǎn)?？脊抛C實，章華臺就坐落在今潛江市龍灣鎮(zhèn)。如今這里已是著名旅游景區(qū)。

章華臺是一個雄偉的野外楚文化陳列館，而在市區(qū)內(nèi)展示潛江非遺文化的潛陽城里也別有洞天。吃完飯，留學(xué)生們沿著店內(nèi)的潛江非遺文化長廊，邊欣賞邊體驗潛江非遺文化的魅力。在石磨豆?jié){作坊前，留學(xué)生們爭相體驗推磨的技巧。在麥稈燙畫作坊前，看著鏡框里燙好的畫作，大家無不稱奇；燙畫藝人用電烙鐵把一根根剖開的麥稈燙平并聯(lián)結(jié)起來。在剪紙作坊前，幾個韓國女孩被深深地吸引住；老藝人邊剪邊給她們解釋技巧，三下五除二就剪出一只生動的蝴蝶，隨手送給了姑娘們，并欣然同姑娘們合影留念。在關(guān)公塑像前，來自各國的小伙子們模仿關(guān)公揮刀斬將的動作……

為了騰出時間讓學(xué)生們認(rèn)識“東方莎士比亞”曹禺，潛陽城樓上的龍蝦博物館和花鼓戲演出只能等下次再來一飽眼福了。

在曹禺紀(jì)念館里，大家在講解員的帶領(lǐng)下，移步了解曹禺的成就、曹禺和潛江的關(guān)系、曹禺對中國戲劇和世界戲劇的貢獻(xiàn)等，大家都為曹禺的成就和人生感到震撼。來自俄羅斯的沃斯科波耶尼科夫·維克多（Voskoboinikov Viktor）停步在《雷雨》俄文版照片前，教中國朋友“雷雨”的俄語念法。

短短的4個小時，留學(xué)生們了解了一只蝦、一粒米和一個人（曹禺）背后的故事，大家游興十足，卻不得不帶著些許遺憾踏上歸途。艾哈邁德·居普里亞迪說：“這次旅游給我留下深刻的印象，原來我不知道的地方，之前沒聽過的城市，竟然擁有這么大的工廠，還培養(yǎng)出了中國大人物。一個小小的城市，卻跟全世界許多國家緊緊地聯(lián)系在一起，讓世界許多國家的人民都品嘗到這里的美味佳肴，這是一個了不起的城市，如果有機會，我還要來?！彼脑?，道出了每一位留學(xué)生的心聲，讓我們期待下次走進(jìn)潛江的機會。

（部分照片由潛江市委宣傳部提供）

A paper-cut artisan and her Korean visitors (Photo by Su Zhuolin)剪紙藝人和熱情的韓國來客留影（蘇卓琳 攝）

An international student is trying to grind with a stone mill (Photo by Su Zhuolin)留學(xué)生嘗試推磨（蘇卓琳 攝）

Thong Duyen Hong, a Vietnamese, was amazed at the crystal-clear rice grains in the bowl. She did not know that rice could be steamed bowl by bowl like this. “This kind of rice tastes similar to Vietnamese rice, but what impressed me most is the special way of cooking it. I smelt its delicate fragrance when I was eating it. I’m curious about how to cook the rice this way, how much rice and water is needed, and how it is different from the general way of cooking. Imagining a new method while eating makes me feel like the rice tastes even better.”

A Culture-loaded City

Qianjiang has enjoyed profound cultural resources—of which Zhanghua Palace is a good example. Built in 535 BC during the Spring and Autumn Period, Zhanghua Palace was a temporary imperial residence of King Ling of Chu, where the emperor lived or dealt with government affairs during his tours. According to historical records, Zhanghua Tai was “built by laborers from all over the country for several years” and was reputed as the top palace of its kind in the country at that time. It serves to illustrate the long history and profound ancient culture of Qianjiang. Archaeological evidence shows that Zhanghua Palace is located in today’s Longwan Town of Qianjiang. It is now a famous tourist attraction.

The suburban Zhanghua Palace magnificently exhibits the Chu culture, while downtown Qianyangcheng uniquely displays Qianjiang’s intangible cultural heritage. After the meal, the international students walked along the corridor of Qianjiang’s intangible cultural heritage set in the restaurant, enjoying and experiencing the charm of local culture.

Foreign students in the Cao Yu Memorial (Photo by Su Zhuolin)留學(xué)生們參觀曹禺紀(jì)念館（蘇卓琳 攝）

International students listen to stories behind the crayfish-rice (Photo by Su Zhuolin)留學(xué)生們聆聽蝦稻米背后的故事（蘇卓琳 攝）

At the “stone ground soymilk” workshop, the students rushed to experience the requisite grinding skills to make soymilk. At the “wheat straw pyrography” workshop, everyone was amazed to see the pyrographic designs in the frames created by the pyrographer who ironed and connected the broken wheat straws with an electric iron. The “paper cutting” workshop deeply attracted the Korean girls. The elderly artist cut the paper while explaining the skills to her visitors. After just a few cuts, a lifelike butterfly miraculously showed up in her hands. She gave it as a gift to the girls and took photos with them happily. In front of the statue of Guan Yu, Chinese god of martial arts, young men from different countries imitated him wielding his Green Dragon Crescent Blade to slay the enemy general.

In order to make time for the students to visit the Cao Yu Memorial, we could only wait for the next time to visit the Crayfish Museum and watch the local flower-drum opera upstairs in Qianyangcheng.

Cao Yu was a Chinese playwright, often regarded as China’s most important of the 20th century. Regarding his contribution to the modern Chinese “spoken theater,” people often compare him to William Shakespeare, the greatest playwright in the English world. In the Cao Yu Memorial, the students were guided to learn about Cao Yu’s achievements, his affection towards his hometown of Qianjiang, as well as his contribution to the Chinese dramatic arts and the world. Everyone was amazed at Cao Yu’s achievements and life story. Voskoboinikov Viktor from Russia stopped in front of a photo of the drama Thunderstorm in Russian and taught his Chinese friends the Russian pronunciation of the play.

In a short period of four hours, the international students learned the stories behind the tiny crayfish, the fragrant crayfish-rice, and the remarkable life of Cao Yu. Excited and fully occupied, they were reluctant to bid farewell to this lovely city at the time of departure. Ahmad Jupriyadi said, “I am deeply impressed by this trip. A place I didn’t know, a city I hadn’t heard of before, actually has many large factories and great figures in its history. Such a small city is closely linked with many countries in the world, so that people from other countries can enjoy its delicious foods. It’s a great city, and I will come again if I have the chance.” His words expressed the wishes of every student. Let us look forward to a next visit to Qianjiang!

(Part of the photos herein courtesy of the Publicity Department of Qianjiang Municipal Committee. Translation: Zhu Yaguang & Chen Jiani)