China News Service, Jinan, January 23 (Li Mingrui) The Spring Festival is one of the most representative traditional festivals of the Chinese nation. "Going home to celebrate the New Year" is the deepest nostalgia and the strongest nostalgia of the Chinese people.

On the eve of the Spring Festival, "Hospitable Shandong" seizes the "golden time" to launch a rural cultural tourism festival across the province, "using the festival as a medium" to invite tourists at home and abroad to come to Shandong to savor nostalgia and celebrate the special "Lu Tao" year.

The scene of the launching ceremony of the 2024 Spring Festival Shandong Rural Culture Tourism Festival (Taian).

Photo by Chen Yang

  Visit the "Yellow River Fair" for a special Citywalk

  As the 2024 Spring Festival Shandong Rural Culture Tourism Festival was officially launched on the day of Laba Festival, the "Winter Yellow River Fair" with a strong New Year flavor also "debuted" again.

Walking in the lively market, the simple and rustic atmosphere hits your face.

Shandong people flock to the New Year Festival eagerly, eager to enjoy a unique "spiritual SPA" amidst the human fireworks.

In Tai'an, Shandong Province, "calligraphers and painters" splashed ink at the Yellow River Fair.

Photo by Chen Yang

  For many people, what they miss most when "going to the market" is "that bite to eat". Instead of queuing for hours to check in at Internet celebrity stores, it is better to "steal half a day's leisure" to look for local delicacies at the "Winter Yellow River Fair".

  At the "Hidden Gourmet" section of the Yellow River Fair in Daiyue District, Tai'an City, the specialty piglet of Jiaoyu Town is being grilled until it becomes sizzling and oily, making people mouth-watering.

"The roasted suckling pig skin is crispy and delicious, crunchy when chewed, and the skin is crispy and the meat is tender." A tourist was immersed in the delicious food and praised it.

According to the staff of Jiaoyu Town, the little fragrant pigs grew up in the natural playground of the farm orchard, so the meat is tender, meaty but not greasy, and is deeply loved by consumers.

  In addition to Shandong's local specialties, specialties from the nine provinces (districts) along the Yellow River, such as Inner Mongolia air-dried beef, Gansu lily, Ningxia wolfberry, etc., can all be purchased in one stop at the "Yellow River Market".

On social platforms, terms such as "No one can walk out of the Yellow River Daji empty-handed", "The first batch of people returning home for the New Year have begun to rush to the Daji", "I was moved by the prices of Shandong Daji" and other frequently searched terms.

  The "Yellow River Fair" is not only a platform for displaying and tasting special snacks from the nine provinces (districts) along the Yellow River, but also an important carrier to spread the Yellow River culture. The intangible cultural heritage creations from all over Shandong have become a beautiful scenery at the fair.

In Rizhao, Shandong Province, people buy New Year accessories at the Yellow River Fair.

Photo by Bo Lin

  Nishan Inkstone, Confucius Gate God, Qufu Dazhuang Silk Flowers... At the Confucius Museum's New Year's Eve·Yellow River Culture Exhibition, all kinds of intangible cultural heritage and creations demonstrated the charm of cultural inheritance.

According to Kong Shujuan, the full-time deputy secretary of the Confucius Museum, the Yellow River Culture Collection of the Confucius Museum is closer to the people and life. Not only can you buy New Year goods, but you can also watch exhibitions, watch operas, write Spring Festival couplets, and open door gods, allowing the audience to participate and interact in person. Experience and feel the profound heritage of cultural heritage.

  Wang Degang, vice president of the China Tourism Association, president of the Shandong Tourism Industry Association, and dean of the Tourism Industry Research Institute of Shandong University, believes that the reason why the Yellow River Fair attracts people to go there is that it not only appears as a regular market, but also Including intangible cultural heritage fairs, special performances and exhibitions, etc., it is rich in form and content, and has market influence and appeal.

  Craftsmanship "out of the circle" carries the cultural connotation of Qilu

  For thousands of years, traditional handicrafts have condensed the labor wisdom passed down from generation to generation of the Chinese nation, carrying the life aesthetics that has been passed down in China for a long time. Qilu has rich cultural fertile soil, which has nourished a wide variety of intangible cultural heritage and traditional crafts.

In Qingdao, Shandong Province, students experienced the charm of "intangible cultural heritage" up close by experiencing paper-cutting, shadow puppetry and other intangible cultural heritage projects.

Photo by Zhang Ying

  As an important carrier of "Cultural Jinan", Jinan has a long cultural heritage. Among Jinan's "handmade treasures", Jinan shadow puppetry, Longshan black pottery, Laiwu tin carvings, etc. with strong local characteristics are constantly integrated into people's lives.

  Weifang is a famous handicraft city in history. Weifang kites, Yangjiabu woodblock New Year paintings, high-density clay sculptures and other handmade products have emerged, which have become more charming over time.

The clay sculpture "Calling Tiger" displayed in a clay sculpture workshop in Gaomi, Shandong attracts tourists.

Photo by Sha Jianlong

  Rizhao has a long history, splendid culture and rich intangible cultural heritage resources.

Rizhao peasant paintings, Juxian door stamps, plate buckles, etc. all carry Rizhao's unique cultural heritage and endogenous power.

  "'Shandong handmade' is the inheritance of Shandong's history and culture." In Wang Degang's view, the "prototype" of handmade is intangible cultural heritage and traditional skills, and "Shandong handmade" does not only refer to individual elements embodied in various intangible cultural heritage in various places , but a “collection” of Qilu culture.

"Each handmade project is finding a new way of survival and development in modern society through Qilu culture. I hope that the public can perceive the cultural crystallization behind handmade craftsmanship by understanding and experiencing handmade craftsmanship."

  Good shows in every village invite tourists to "return to the village to celebrate the New Year"

  Rural areas are the root of China. If rural areas are governed, the world will be at peace.

Across Shandong, rural areas are being woven "brick by brick" into brand features.

Looking at the good "plays" in each village, each village fully explored its local characteristics and arranged them into the play. The good plays were staged one after another to invite tourists to "return to the village to celebrate the New Year."

Live stilt performance at the launching ceremony of the 2024 Spring Festival Shandong Rural Culture Tourism Festival (Tai'an).

Photo by Chen Yang

  Recently, in Louzi Village, Yiyuan County, Zibo City, gong and drum teams and yangko teams took to the field one after another, winning constant applause from the villagers.

Shi Laihui, secretary of the Party branch of Louzi Village and director of the village committee, said that the Year of the Dragon is coming soon. The gongs and drums team and the yangko team performed the New Year and the new atmosphere. Tourists from all over the world are welcome to Louzi Village to celebrate the New Year.

  Like Louzi Village, a variety of cultural and artistic programs are also performed in Wangzhuang Village, Fei County, Linyi City.

Zhang Hui, publicity and united front committee member of Xuezhuang Town, said that in Xuezhuang Town, various colorful cultural activities are performed every day, and "every village has a good show" is vividly interpreting the beautiful picture of rural revitalization in Yimeng.

  In addition, rural scenery and local specialties are also the "top priority" of rural shows.

  As the Spring Festival approaches, Gengzhuang Cake in Gengzhuang Village, Longquan Town, Juye County, Heze City, is entering its peak sales season. Villagers are busy packing the frosted persimmons into boxes, selling them through live broadcasts on e-commerce platforms, and using logistics express delivery to all parts of the country.

Persimmons are being dried naturally in a greenhouse.

Photo courtesy of Juye County Integrated Media Center

  Gengzhuang Village has been planting persimmons for more than a hundred years, especially the unique variety of mirror-faced persimmon trees. The persimmons produced are called "Geng Cake".

According to Geng Zongfei, the head of the Gengzhuang Cake Cooperative in Gengzhuang Village, in recent years, in order to promote the development of the persimmon industry, the local party branch has explored a development model for cooperatives led by the party branch to achieve "team development" of the village collective and villagers.

"It has extended the persimmon deep processing industry chain, increased the added value of products, and has become a 'good show' in Gengzhuang Village."

  Talking about how Shandong villages can increase their efforts in singing "good shows" in the future, Wang Degang suggested that from the perspective of Shandong Province, each village should comprehensively explore and organize local resources and combine them with unique local economic or cultural tourism resources to create characteristic products. According to the trend of market development, shape your own uniqueness to avoid "homogenization".

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