On 4 February, the 10th Spring Festival Celebration for Overseas Chinese Students and Scholars was held at the Grand Theater of the Karolinska Institute. Ambassador Gui Congyou attended the Celebration and delivered a speech. Nearly a thousand students, scholars, and local Chinese and Swedish people watched the performance.
Ambassador Gui extended cordial new year greetings to the students and scholars and sent good wishes to their families in China. He said that the Spring Festival Celebration, also known as the “Stockholm Spring Festival Gala”, has been held for 10 years. Its growing influence and audience demonstrate the unity and upward spirit of overseas Chinese students, making positive contributions to cultural exchanges between China and Sweden.
Ambassador Gui said the year 2017 was truly remarkable. The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was successfully held and socialist modernization with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, an era of ambition, progress and forging ahead. China and its people have great expectations for overseas students. In his letter to the Chinese students at Moscow University, General Secretary Xi Jinping encouraged overseas Chinese students to carry forward the tradition of studying abroad to serve the motherland, be ambitious and hardworking, and become the best that can be trusted with important responsibilities. Ambassador Gui said he believes that overseas Chinese students and scholars in Sweden will take on missions of the new era, repay their parents and motherland, and dedicate their youth to realizing their dreams.
The brilliant performance earned one round of applause after another. On the stage, the students and scholars linked elements of their daily life with the show’s theme---the Chinese culture, China’s development and the Chinese dream. Dance programs such as A New Era of Auspice and Happiness and Heat of Youth spelled the high spirits of young Chinese students. Songs such as A Dream in Tang Dynasty and Picking Osmund presented profound traditional Chinese culture. Cross-talk I Want to Travel and stage show If You Are the One Stockholm 2018 humorously depicted the everyday life of Chinese students and scholars. Singing relay A Beautiful Country spoke of the devotion of local Chinese students and scholars and the overseas Chinese community toward the motherland.
The gala reached its climax with a special program consisting of singing, dancing, recitation and videos of interview---My Home, My Country, My Dream. In this program, an older generation of Chinese students recalled their experience of studying in Sweden and working hard in China and a younger generation told their journey of carrying forward the traditions and keeping the home and country in their heart. The conversation between the two generations reflected how overseas Chinese miss and cherish their family and hometown, their dedication to the motherland and determination to realize the Chinese dream. The audience was deeply moved by the show and gave it a long round of warm applause.
The Celebration was successfully concluded with the song Auld Lang Syne.