During their first visit to the Romanian Cultural Institute (ICR) Beijing, they had the opportunity to learn about the geography, natural beauty, and some of the great personalities of Romania, as well as about Romanian culture and traditions at the onset of spring. The children watched a short video about Mărțișor, an ancient Romanian tradition. They learned that the name "Mărțișor" is a diminutive of March, marking the arrival of spring. This celebration is characterized by a series of traditions, including symbolic arts and crafts. Consequently, they participated in a workshop to create traditional Romanian Mărțișors, which the children, proud of their work, were then able to take home.
After the Mărțișor workshop, they learned a few words in Romanian (greetings and thanks) and tasted Romanian dishes, with a buffet prepared featuring traditional products, including the famous Moldavian "mucenici". They listened to/watched Romanian children's songs (Spring is coming, Let's dance, etc.), singing along with lyrics translated into Chinese. Both Chinese and Romanian children gave a small recital in their own language of a childhood song. At the end, small gifts were distributed, with each child receiving a book of Romanian fairy tales translated into Chinese and a diploma of "Young Cultural Ambassadors".
In addition to the Chinese and Romanian children, their parents, teachers, and members of the management of China Postal Savings Bank were present at the event, along with personnel from the bank's communication department, who broadcasted the event live, also promoting several Romanian-specific products, including stamp collections printed by Romfilatelia.
The event was equally appreciated by the families of the Chinese and Romanian children, as well as by the Chinese partners with whom ICR Beijing collaborated to organize the Mărțișor workshop. The promotion of the event was carried out on the online platforms and social media (Website/WeChat/Facebook) of ICR/ICR Beijing, on the participants' WeChat page, as well as on local media.
