Wuxi strengthens ties with San Antonio

Wuxi presents San Antonio with a pair of giant purple clay figurines in honor of the Texan city's 300th anniversary. [Photo/wxrb.com]

Wuxi, the "erhu capital of China", was invited to attend the 300th anniversary of the founding of the city of San Antonio, Texas, on May 4 and 5.

Wuxi presented its Texan sister city with a pair of exquisite purple clay figurines and Wuxi's city mascot, A Fu, in celebration of their six-year relationship.

Members of Meijing Orchestra play traditional Chinese instruments in San Antonio on May 4, including the erhu, pipa and bamboo flute. [Photo/wxrb.com]

Meijing Orchestra from Meicun, where the erhu, a traditional Chinese string instrument, has evolved over 1500 years, gave a wonderful performance conveying the unique charm of traditional Chinese music and Wuxi culture.

Wuxi and San Antonio are both famous for being waterfront cities intercut by canals. The Wuxi section of the Grand Canal of China runs about 6 kilometers and showcases the distinctive features of riverside towns south of the Yangtze River.

A signing ceremony was held on May 5 to establish further exchanges and cooperation between the two cities, with Wuxi hoping to glean much from San Antonio's long history of canal management and associated tourism, while sharing its own ideas and efforts in building construction, education, culture, exhibition and tourism, deepening their relationship as sister cities.

Representatives of Wuxi and San Antonio sign an agreement in San Antonio, Texas, to deepen the relationship between the two canal cities. [Photo/wxrb.com]