Festival bridges cultures in the US capital

The festival showed how Chinese kung fu has brought together people of various races and backgrounds. "Tai Chi has made a big difference in my exercise routine," Terri Gregory told China Daily. She has been practicing Tai Chi with her Chinese master for a year. She and her kung fu peers performed Tai Chi at the festival, and she said that Tai Chi has strengthened her internally.

"The group we practice with is very diverse. It's not just Chinese. We have people from South Korea, African Americans, and more. It's a community center where everyone is mixed together," Gregory said.

"It is much easier to judge each other than it is to take the effort to understand each other. But if we do not understand each other, then that leaves open room for miscalculation and even error," Craig Allen, president of the US-China Business Council, said at the opening ceremony of the festival.

Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng and Guyana's Ambassador to the United States Samuel Hinds also attended the festival. US President Joe Biden and Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser sent letters of congratulations to the festival.

The Washington Chinese Cultural Festival, started in 1999 by the Greater Washington Chinese American Community, has become a major event in the DC area. The festival showcased a variety of performances, including lion dances, vocal shows, musical recitals, martial arts, and acrobatics. It also offers cultural exhibits and interactive activities like calligraphy, Chinese painting, theater, tea ceremonies, and culinary displays.

Meanwhile, as China strives to lure foreign tourists to the country, the southwestern province of Guizhou is taking it one step further by coming to the US capital to promote its tourism.