A cultural exchange event was held in the Shunjing international community, Lixia district, Jinan on Feb 2 to celebrate the upcoming Lantern Festival, which falls on Feb 5 this year.

Overseas students, local residents, and traditional cultural enthusiasts participated in the event and tasted yuanxiao or tangyuan, a traditional Chinese Lantern Festival delicacy, which is made of glutinous rice filled with different ingredients, such as sugar, chocolate and sesame paste.

Peking Opera performances, a paper-cutting learning activity and an interaction game were also held, offering people a chance to experience traditional Chinese culture.

Lantern Festival is usually on the 15th day of the first lunar month, and is one of the most significant traditional festivals in China. The activity was aimed to help locals and foreigners get to know more about Chinese traditional culture and promote cultural exchanges, local officials said.