Exotic Greater Bay Area, world cultures on display

Ocean sceneries and event highlights were being projected on the Zhuhai Opera House's exterior walls, bringing the Dec 12 opening day of Guangdong International Tourism & Culture Festival to a climax.

With 26 advanced laser projectors constituting 10 lighting sets for the presentation, Zhuhai's iconic Fisher Maiden sculpture and other attractions appear 85-m wide and 60-m high on the two scallop-shaped buildings. Sound, electricity, water, imagery, and musical elements are integrated to deliver advanced audio-visual effects.

Viewers also capture the city's glamour with quick reviews of splendid moments at WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai and the 2017 China National Windsurfing & National Sailing Championships among other brand events.

Laser show

The opening day highlighted performances by Cantonese and exotic foreign cultures, while the Dynamic Guangdong, Romantic Zhuhai festival promotes an urban tour union for the Greater Bay Area.

An evening show was held on opening day of the festivity. It starred artists from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, and Macao including Mo Hualun, a Zhuhai fellow and one of China's three notable tenors.

In addition to a summit, conferences and tour route promotions, there were carnival cultural performances, tour exhibitions, and yachting experiences to relish in the morning.

Staged were intangible cultural heritages from around the country such as Dragon Dance from Foshan's Nanhai, and Alien Folk Dance from the South Pacific Cook Islands.

Folk dance from South Pacific's Cook Islands

Another highlight was a more than 700-year-old folk art unique to Jinwan District of Zhuhai -- Sanzao Crane Dance. Elderly artists imitated behavioral habits of cranes from landing, searching for food, pecking, resting, playing, and homing through dance and song. Celebrating Lunar New Year, the custom is also a way for villagers to congratulate the elderly on their birthdays.

Sanzao Crane Dance

Troupes from Poland dressed in bright colors sang and danced to the accompaniment of organ and electronic keyboard to perform the traditional Fishermen's Home depicting marine life in the city of Gdańsk on the Baltic Coast.

Polish performance of Fishermen's Home [Photos by Zhu Xi / Zhuhai Daily]

Most representative tourism resources of Guangdong were on display, providing insight into the province's maturing tourism system. On display were famous tourist scenes and discount travel packages.

Entrusted by Gov Ma Xingrui, Guangdong Vice Gov Deng Haiguang extended welcome to government leaders and guests and thanks for support from the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) and those from home and abroad.

Deng said the province is already an important tourist source, destination, and distribution hub of the Asia-Pacific region. Likewise, the festival has become a major tourist festivity brand of Guangdong and China, key window showcasing tourism vitality and promoting Lingnan and Chinese tourist culture, as well as important event for deepening international tourist exchange and cooperation.

CNTA Vice Chairman Du Jiang hailed the event as of great significance for tourism development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Guangdong has become one of the country's most dynamic and captivating regions with the most advanced tourism economy. As always, CNTA will support the development and prosperity of Guangdong's tourism and help to shape a Greater Bay Area world-class tourist region, he said.

Zhuhai Party Chief Guo Yuanqiang cited several achievements in creating cultural tourism in past few years. Honors include being designated as a demonstration area for "all-for-one tourism" and named to China's first group of Demonstration Cities of Tourism & Leisure.

The coastal city's characteristics of being open, innovative, ecological, civilized, and dynamic have become more obvious than before. 

Zhuhai will boost construction of Hengqin New Area as an international leisure and tourist island, coordinate Macao's endeavor to be a world leisure and tourist center, and contribute to making the Greater Bay Area a quality living circle ideal for inhabitation, work, and travel, Guo asserted.