FUZHOU, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The football players of women's teams from abroad participating in the KELME 2019 FISU University World Cup-Football ongoing in Jinjiang City of east China's Fujian Province visited the Wudianshi traditional blocks in the city on Wednesday to gain some insight into its rich traditional culture.
Located in the heart of Qingyang, the old town of Jinjiang, and as the birthplace of Jinjiang, the Wudianshi traditional blocks boast rich cultural heritage, such as the characteristic buildings in the Ming and Qing dynasties, various temples, etc.
The lead of the women's team from University of Ottawa said that all she knew about Jinjiang before she came here was what she had searched online, and the visit to the Wudianshi traditional blocks made her feel excited as it was a good opportunity to explore the city.
She also spoke highly of the sportsmanship of the city as well as Jinjiang people's enthusiasm about this sports event. "We definitely sense that as the city seems excited about the tournament, and there's a lot of support." "Even when we're wandering a little bit outside of the hotel, people seem really friendly and pretty excited to have us. That's been really nice."
Speaking of the performance of her team in the match so far, she said they had done very well and the event is a very good opportunity for them to improve their football skills. "We'll be better by being in the tournament."
The doctor of the women's team from Thailand's College of Asian Scholars had a crush on Zheng Huancai's house, a house built in the late Qing Dynasty. After reading the English introduction about the building, he also asked why it was built by an overseas Chinese from the Philippines.
One of the accompanying Chinese staff offered some details about the house to help him know more about this ancient building, saying that in late Qing Dynasty, many people in Jinjiang went abroad to earn a living, making the city a hometown of overseas Chinese.
It is learned that Zheng Huancai's House was built in 1900, and relocated in the Wudianshi blocks from Qingmeng Village, Chidian Town of Jinjiang in June 2012. The building, with antique stone carving, delicate ceramics and wood chasing, embodies the typical housing style in southern Fujian province in east China of the late Qing Dynasty.
It was very "nice" to feel the city's culture through visiting the Wudianshi traditional blocks, said the No.15 player from Paulista University, adding that she also liked shopping here and already bought a pair of sports shoes here which were just on her feet.
Photo: The women's football team from University of Sydney enjoys the Nanyin music.
"Beautiful!" The Australian players couldn't help stop praising the wonderful performance after watching three players playing Nanyin, a traditional music in Jinjiang.
"The Nanyin music is really cool, really different, and I like the story behind it because it is about the history. That is really interesting." said the No.5 player from the women's team of University of Sydney who showed eagerness to know more about the city's culture.
Borazio Tanya, another Australian player, showed interest in everything in the blocks and kept asking volunteers questions about the Minnan culture (the culture in southern Fujian). She said that she likes the custom, culture and history presented by the ancient buildings here, and until she saw the old temples here did she really understood what history means for the Chinese people. (Contributed by Gu Shanshan)
A single purchase
