On March 1, the Confucius Institute in Brussels hosted a Spring Festival celebration to welcome the Year of the Horse, bringing together more than 200 guests from various sectors.

The celebration began with a series of cultural performances. One after another, classic Chinese songs such as Beautiful Grassland—My Home, My Motherland and I, and I Love You, China filled the air. The traditional Chinese dance, Ascending Spring Mountain, captured the essence of Chinese aesthetics, while a Tai Chi fan performance showcased the charm of Chinese martial arts. Meanwhile, students from the Confucius Institute in Brussels performed a hulusi (gourd flute) solo, A Night in Dong Village, and a xun (ancient Chinese ocarina) solo, Love of My Life. Vocal performances, including the solo Blue-and-White Porcelain and the chorus Affinities of This Life, were lyrical and moving. The evening reached its climax with an energetic song-and-dance performance of Little Apple, which brought the atmosphere to a joyful peak.

Following the performance, a Chinese cultural workshop took the stage. Belgium’s Guoyitang Clinic offered hands-on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) experiences and herbal tea tastings. Other activities such as the game of Go, Chinese calligraphy and painting, paper-cutting, ink-blowing painting, and Peking Opera mask-making also drew an enthusiastic response from guests.

Fu Rong, the Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute in Brussels, noted that the event aimed to enable people from all walks of life in Belgium to experience the charm of Chinese culture through artistic performances, cultural activities, and exchanges. He added that it also sought to build a bridge of friendship between the Chinese and Belgian peoples and further strengthen the foundation of bilateral people-to-people ties.