A guqin player charms the audience in Shinan. [Photo/WeChat account: qdweishinan]

Dec 21 coincided with the Winter Solstice (Chinese: 冬至) – the 22nd solar term of the year, with the traditional Chinese lunar calendar dividing the year into 24 solar terms.

On that day, the Shinan Culture Courier Station – located in the Shinan district of Qingdao city in East China's Shandong province – held a one-day winter carnival for the locals, who had a ball.

It staged a series of entertaining diversions, enabling residents to experience intangible cultural heritage or ICH through displays and offering activities involving handcrafts and delicious food among other things, according to local media reports.

The Chinese song White Snow – performed by a guqin, a seven-string traditional Chinese instrument – provided a haunting tune that eloquently represented the arrival of the snow. In addition, some participants also had fun learning about how to apply makeup powder – just one of the ICH skills that apparently really appeals to the young in Shinan.

The series of themed activities aimed to explore how tradition and modernity can work together through various ICH activities – while also showcasing the charms of traditional culture in the integration of tradition and fashion.