Lu Meilian

T he global pandemic will never hinder exchanges between international friendship cities， let alone their aspirations for communication. Under the strong guidance of the CPAFFC and the Fujian Foreign Affairs Office（FAO）， the Zhangzhou Foreign Affairs Office took active measures to innovate approaches to communicating with their foreign counterparts. Although the pandemic made cross-border exchanges impossible， they used cloud technology provided by China Mobile to enhance foreign communications for greater co- operation. The moves have effectively helped accelerate the citys campaign to build a “Greater Zhangzhou with Greater Industry and Greater OpeningUp”.

The tulip symbolizes the Netherlands， while the narcissus is the flower of Zhangzhou. The 12th anniversary of Zhangzhou-Wageningen friendship city relations fell in May this year， marking 12 years of friendship between tulip and narcissus. On the afternoon of May 19， Zhangzhou and Wageningen held a“mayors tea party” online. The participants gathered to talk about friendship and common development over a cup of Chinese tea. Delegated by Mayor Liu Yuan， vice-mayor Cui Weilei attended the tea party and had a conversation with Mayor Geert van Rumund and Vice-Mayor Maud Hulshof of Wageningen. During the event， films showing off the two cities and conveying greetings from Zhangzhou youngsters were played. The classic Zhangzhou puppet show Damingfu Prefecture was performed and kongfu tea was made. The Zhangzhou traditional intangible cultural heritage and tea culture earned the applause and praise of the Wageningen participants.

Pass friendship between two cities from generation to generation

At the tea party， Zhangzhou city leaders noted that this year is the first of the “Greater Zhangzhou” development by “moving the city center eastward， expanding across the river to the south and to the sea”. They expressed hope that the two sides would discuss mutually beneficial cooperation in the harbor industry， modern agriculture， horticulture and the health food industry； carry out intangible cultural heritage and modern art exchanges， building bridges of people-to-people exchanges； and pass friendship from generation to generation.

Mayor Rumund said that Wageningen is proud to have established friendship-city relations with Zhangzhou： “I have visited Zhangzhou three times， and each reunion was truly impressive. The nice people， fragrant tea， beautiful flowers and delicious food are all impressive， and the exchanges between the two cities have been fruitful. Through this cloud gathering， we deeply feel that Zhangzhou develops with each passing day. We look forward to deeper mutual exchanges and cooperation in more fields. I will definitely visit Zhangzhou again， with a delegation or my family， to see the latest development of this lovely friendship city.”

“Friendship cities exchange and cooperation award”

Since the establishment of friendship-city relations， exchanges between Zhangzhou and Wageningen have extended to deeper levels to yield a host of fruit. Tulips grow vibrantly on both sides of Wageningen Road in the Zhangzhou Development Zone； the Sino-Europe Agricultural Development Center has made positive achievements； the International Association of Horticultural Producers and Wageningen University and Research Center have made frequent visits to the Zhangzhou Flower and Agriculture Expo； Zhangzhou has exported more than$10 million worth of flowers to Europe for 10 consecutive years； Huisman（China） Co has seen a business boom in Zhangzhou； KLM has established direct flights between Xiamen and Amsterdam； the third International Lilium Seminar drew talent from around the world； The Sino-Europe Food Industry Development Center and Third International Conference on Bamboo Application — Green Circular Economy and Technology — were attended by many talented people； The Zhangzhou Declaration was issued during the two sessions of the global Future Food Summit； and the Holland Food Valley representative office in China was established in Zhangzhou.

Mutual cooperation and exchanges have continually expanded， and the friendship-city relationship has yielded remarkable fruit that has been recognized by the CPAFFC and Fujian Foreign Affairs Office. Wageningen won the Friendship City Exchange and Cooperation Award at the China International Friendship Cities Conference. Mayor Rumund keeps the trophy on his desk and proudly shows it to his guests.

Twists and turns never overwhelm warmth of the world

A group of 65 people from Wageningen University Symphony Orchestra once traveled thousands of miles to the Zhangzhou Peoples Theater for a special performance， bringing the melodious symphony to the friendly people of Zhangzhou.

Wageningen is the city of life sciences， and the university is at the forefront of research in the field of life and food sciences. Zhangzhou-based Minnan Normal University sent teams of experts to Wageningen University to promote exchanges and cooperation in the field of edible fungus and other foods. Under the framework of friendship cities cooperation， the friendly exchanges between the two universities have always been intense.

“2020 was an extraordinary year. But the twists and turns we suffered with COVID-19 will never overwhelm the endeavors and warmth of the world. We hope the global pandemic will end soon. Then we would like to invite you to take a trip to Zhangzhou， a famous historical and cultural city in China， to enjoy Chinese tea， to appreciate the beautiful narcissus， the traditional local culture and the fascinating scenery，”the Zhangzhou Foreign Affairs Office said. It was joined by the Communist Youth League Zhangzhou Committee to invite English majors from Minnan Normal University to shoot a video under the theme “Tea and Friendship： A bosom friend from afar brings a distant land near： Zhangzhou youth send online greetings to Vageningen”， which also deeply touched Mayor Rumund.

“Our mayor is a big fan of the puppet troupe”

Mr. Aalt Dijkhuizen， former president of Wageningen University， often said that Mayor Rumund was a “big fan” of the Zhangzhou Puppet Troupe.

When receiving visiting delegations from Zhangzhou， Rumund recalled the cultural relics he had seen in Zhangzhou and the performances given by the troupe in Wageningen in 2009. At that time， amid the warm applause of Wageningen citizens， the mayor presented the artists with beautiful flowers. With fondness for Chinese culture， he said that Zhangzhous intangible cultural heritage， such as the glove puppet show， was impressive.

Mutual learning and common prosperity

Before the online tea party， Wageningen held a foreign affairs souvenirs exhibition， showcasing for local citizens the gifts from Zhangzhou. Behind each souvenir article were touching stories demonstrating friendship between the sister cities. The calligraphy works of “mutual learning and common prosperity” presented by Zhangzhou calligraphers to the Wageningen mayor also attracted wide attention.

“Mutual learning and common prosperity” was quoted in President Xi Jinpings remarks during his meeting with Dutch King Willem-Alexander in his visit to the Netherlands. Xi said：“Though located separately at the opposite ends of the Eurasian continent， China and the Netherlands share a long history of communication， and have set a model for achieving common prosperity through mutual learning between Eastern and Western civilizations.”

A big thank-you

After the warm and touching tea party， the international relations office of Wageningen wrote a letter to Zhangzhous foreign affairs office expressing heartfelt gratitude to all organizers of the online event. The letter said： “This activity， including the video， tea ceremony and puppet show， left a very deep impression on our mayor. He was really moved and touched， and he wants to let the Zhangzhou delegation know that he really appreciated the attention and all the work and effort. So a big thank you to the foreign affairs office for organizing such a nice program！！”

The mayors tea party got a lot of attention from mainstream media outlets. Nearly 20 of them， including the China National Radio Network， China News Network and Fujian Daily provided coverage. China Media Group also published the video of Zhangzhou youths online greetings on overseas medias internet sites， which received warm responses.

The two cities officially signed a friendship-city agreement in May 2009. Mayor Geert van Rumund and Li Jianguo， mayor of Zhangzhou at the time， joked that Wageningen and Zhangzhou were officially married. They drank“love shots” of champagne from one anothers glasses according to traditional Chinese custom.

Twelve years have passed. The champagne has become more fragrant and sweet. Even today， we can still experience its enchanting flavor.