LEIDEN, The Netherlands, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima, who are to pay their first official state visit to China
end-October, attended a conference titled "China in the Netherlands" on Thursday
that discussed China's presence in the Netherlands at a micro and macro level.
Experts from fields such as business, education, culture and media shared their experiences connecting the Netherlands and China at the conference held at
Leiden University.
"Chinese have been living in the Netherlands for over a hundred years now. They form an exemplary minority of hard-working
people Dellin
Betances Jersey ," said the rector of Leiden University Carel Stolker in
his opening speech. "In the last 20 years, this group of people has changed a
lot. The second generation of Chinese in the Netherlands is often highly
educated and very enterprising."
"Nowadays, more than half of the products we use daily are made or partly made in China. You could say that China is becoming more and more a normal part
of our society. Many schools and companies will probably feel like this as
well," he added.
Leiden University's study of Sinology dates back 150 years. In 1877, the university appointed its first professor of the Chinese language. Now it enrolls
about 100 first-year students in China studies each year. The current secretary
of the king has studied Chinese in Leiden, said Stolker.
Lase Hu, a second-generation Chinese immigrant in the Netherlands David
Robertson Jersey , told the forum: "I grew up with a cup of coffee
representing the Dutch culture in one hand, and a cup of green tea representing
the Chinese culture in the other hand."
Gabriella Esselbrugge, who owns a hotel-restaurant in Giethoorn, an idyllic village in the northeast of the Netherlands, said 72 percent of her guests are
Chinese.
The village is providing more information in Chinese and more services targeting Chinese consumers, all tailor-made initiatives to cater to growing
visitor numbers.
Bei Wang, another speaker of Chinese origin Clint
Frazier Jersey , told the audience that people in China nowadays know more
about the Netherlands than the Dutch people would expect. "Their interest no
longer just focuses on traditional icons such as wooden shoes, windmills and
soccer, but also includes politics, business, social policies and so on," said
Wang, a media and business consultant.
More Dutch schools are also offering Chinese language studies. Hans Crum C.C.
Sabathia Jersey , deputy principal of a secondary school teaching Chinese,
said 15 percent of the students in his school have taken an introduction to the
Chinese language.
The Dutch government recently announced Chinese language and culture will be an exam subject for higher level secondary school students in the Netherlands
from 2017. Ahead of the implementation of this policy, Crum's school in 2006
became one of the first schools to conduct a pilot for this plan.
Conference organizer and professor of modern China studies at Leiden University Frank Pieke said China's relevance to the Netherlands is significant
but underestimated.
Fokke Obbema, journalist at Dutch daily de Volkskrant and author of "China and the West -- Hope and Fear in the Age of Asia" called for a balanced approach
towards China.
He believes there is no doubt that China will become more powerful, but China will certainly not eclipse the rest of the world.
"This balanced approach should enable the daily undercurrent of contact between people to continue to prosper," he said in his book.
By Alessandra Cardone
ROME, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) Foreign tourism boosted Italy's economy in 2013 and 62 percent of international operators worldwide confirmed an increase of travels
toward Italy during Christmas and New Year's Eve
holidays Brian
Roberts Jersey , a recent survey from the National Agency of Tourism
(ENIT) revealed.
The positive trend would give a solid help to an exhausted economy slowing emerging from the longest recession after World War II.
ENIT's survey was performed among major tour operators and travel agencies around the world (in 18 European and 10 non-European countries, respectively).
The 62 percent increase in demands for "Italian holidays" has concerned
extra-European countries, but a positive trend was also confirmed by 55 percent
of European tour operators and agencies, the survey showed.
Diversifying and widening the offer seems to be the secret of the success. "We have doubled our efforts, trying to promote Italy in every corner of the
world in 2013. Now good results are coming," said Andrea Babbi, director-general
of ENIT.
Gino Acampora Brett
Gardner Jersey , managing director of an agency based in the southern city
of Sorrento, near Naples, agreed. "The secret is varying your offers. Italy has
many attractions: culture, history, food and wine, wellness, nature of all
sorts... everything that foreign tourists could
love Bernie
Williams Jersey ," Acampora explained to Xinhua. "Competition with other
countries is also great, however, and Internet offers or self-made travels are
also increasing. So you must be really good in attracting your specific target
of clients with 'ad-hoc' proposals," he pointed out.
Founded in the '70, Acampora Travel agency works nation-wide and focuses on a target of medium and rich tourists. "Foreign inflow has been overall very good
in 2013. We have had excellent results with Canada, the United States,
Australia Babe
Ruth Jersey , but also with Latin American countries. I would estimate by
now the inbound flow will give us a 10-12 percent increase of profits," the
manager added.
Italy is fifth most visited destination in the world tourism ranking compiled by United Nation World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) after France, United States,
China, and Spain.
More than 48 million foreigners had visited the country in 2012 and this number has risen 2.5 percent in 2013. It is expected to grow further - around 3
percent - in 2014, according to domestic forecasts.
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