International students from Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine take a group photo with Chinese opera singers at the Nanjing Cultural Center. [Photo/Jiangsu International Online]

Nearly 100 international students from countries including India and Vietnam studying at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine in Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu province took part in a series of cultural activities during the week-long Spring Festival holiday, which ended on Jan 27.

They visited the Nanjing Cultural Center on Jan 18 and watched Chinese operas and acrobatics, learned to write the Chinese character "福" (pronounced "fu" and meaning "good fortune") and Spring Festival couplets, and learned how to make lanterns and sugar figurines.

An international student writes the Chinese character "福" on a piece of red paper. [Photo/Jiangsu International Online]

On Jan 22, the first day of the Chinese New Year, several practitioners of intangible cultural heritage items, including paper-cutting, clay figurines, and sugar painting, were invited to the university to teach the international students how to make rabbit-shaped paper cuts and clay figurines.

International students learn paper-cutting in celebration of the Year of the Rabbit. [Photo/Jiangsu International Online]

Sun Zhiguang, vice-principal of the university, expressed hope that the students will share what they have learned and seen in China with their families and friends to promote Chinese culture worldwide.