The people of Nanjing will be the first in China to experience
modern and innovative Germany through concerts, exhibitions, movies
and fairs.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Party secretary of Jiangsu provincial committee Li Yuanchao will
inaugurate the three-year "Germany and China - Moving Ahead
Together" program tonight in Nanjing. The program will travel to
other cities such as Guangzhou, Wuhan and Chengdu till 2010.
"We chose Nanjing as the first city because it is a cultural
center and has a long history of exchange with Germany," said
Wolfgang Rohr, head of Germany-China Task Force for the three-year
program, at a press conference yesterday.
Nearly a century ago, some German companies such as Siemens set
up shop in Nanjing. And since then, exchanges in the fields of
science, education and culture between China and Germany have
continued. Nanjing today is home to hundreds of German
enterprises.
The German activities will continue in the city till early
November and include the classical ballet, Romeo and
Juliet, to be performed jointly by the Stuttgart Ballet and
the National Ballet of China.
Among the other activities are a film week, a painting
exhibition, dance recitals and forums on city development and
environmental protection.
The Nanjing program will reach its peak with the weeklong
"German Boulevard", an open-air exhibition on the cooperation
between Germany and China.
The activities aim to explain to the Chinese public that there
is more to Germany than Karl Marx, Western classical music,
literature, philosophy, soccer, luxury cars and Michael
Schumacher.
(China Daily August 28, 2007)
