Daming Palace impresses intl friends in Xi'an

Members of a tour of international friends were blown away by their visit on June 22 to the Daming Palace National Heritage Park in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province.

On the day, the expats participated in a themed event called The Workshop on Understanding Xi'an for International Friends – A Journey of Discovering the Beauty of Ancient City Xi'an which was launched at the park's Danfeng Gate Heritage Museum.

The event was hosted by the publicity department of the Xi'an municipal Party committee and the information office of Xi'an.

It attracted more than 20 foreigners and overseas Chinese from Japan, Italy, Belgium, Cuba, Portugal, Egypt and other countries who have worked and lived in Xi'an for a long time, as well as more than a dozen young folks in Xi'an with overseas study experience, to participate online and offline.

In the opening video, young people from Nara in Japan, Pompeii in Italy and Brussels in Belgium, recounted their stories about the protection of ancient cities.

Through 3D digital projection technology, the participants at the museum were able to see the extraordinary past and present of Daming Palace at a glance. They also experienced the poetry, books, chess, tea taking and other cultural activities in the prosperous Tang Dynasty (618-907) at close range via augmented reality technology.

At the Daming Palace Archaeological Exploration Center, they picked up excavation trowels to unearth ancient relics and fragments – which were actually replicas – and immersed themselves in the daily lives of archaeologists.

"Here we can experience the Tang Dynasty civilization from the archaeological evidence," said a foreigner who teaches at Xi'an Liangjiatan International School.

"It is very interesting. I will bring more friends to experience it," the visitor added.

After the immersive archaeological experience, participants rode bicycles and took a trip in the Daming Palace National Heritage Park.

Plans are for the themed event to be held regularly, to encourage international friends to discover Xi'an and tell Chinese stories, and promote cultural exchanges and mutual learning.