Nearly 40 Chinese and foreign families from Chengjiaqiao Community, Changning District, celebrated the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival at a special party last Friday.
At the gathering, Chinese craftsmen were invited to illustrate their unique skills at paper-cutting, weaving Chinese knots and making flour figures of some famous images from traditional Chinese folk tales.
Participants were also encouraged to learn to make mooncakes by themselves and try to play Chinese folk musical instruments such as the pipa and er'hu.
Everyone at the event enjoyed themselves very much.
At the end of the show, a ceremony was held to honor the district's 10 "five-virtue families," half of whom are expatriates.
In china, the election of "five-virtue families" are held every year among the community since the 1950s. However, it is rare for foreign families to be entitled with the honor.
According to Zhuang Ming, an official from Chengjiaqiao Community, it was the second time for the community to organize such a "Neighbors' Festival."
Zhuang is in charge of the management of the community's 21 high-level residential areas which are home to most of the district's foreign expatriates.
A special administration office was set up for her and her colleagues early last year, which was also the first of its kind in the city.
Zhuang said at first they had no idea how to launch the work at all.
"Unlike Chinese people, foreigners think highly of their privacy," she said. "An unexpected visit to them is usually regarded as offensive. At that time we didn't know how to get close to them."
After talking with the community's many property management companies, they learned that most of the expatriates' wives don't have to work. Although they have plenty of leisure time during the day, they don't know how and where to spend it.
Zhuang decided they should set up a place to gather these wives together, and at the same time to learn about Chinese culture.
"To most foreigners, Chinese culture is not only broad and profound but full of mysteries as well," she said.
"The idea soon received a warm welcome from the residents."
Cooperated with the Chinatown Culture Center, a school that teaches expatriates the Chinese language and culture, a branch of the school was established in Chengjiaqiao's cultural activity center.
It offers various training programs involving traditional Chinese instruments, tea ceremonies, Peking opera, Chinese painting and calligraphy as well as Chinese cooking and Kung Fu.
"Students show enormous interest in these courses," Zhuang said. "We also help them to record their achievements, such as the calligraphy and painting works, into CDs so that they can easily share the achievements with friends."
The community also arranges a party every month in different residential areas. It is organized on a different theme every time.
For example, participants were taught to make Tangyuan, glutinous rice dumplings, during the Lantern Festival and during the Dragon Boat Festival, they were taught to make Zongzi, a kind of glutinous rice dumpling wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves to eat at the festival and sent them over to the old people in the community.
"Like the Neighbors' Festival, wives usually bring the whole family to these parties," she said. "Many have made good friends with each other through the gatherings."
Some expatriates enjoy their life in Chengjiaqiao so much that they are reluctant to leave.
Canadian native Bev Chan who has lived in the community for nearly two years, burst into tears when she learned that her husband would take her back to the United States. Zhuang said it is the moment when she and her colleagues feel most gratified.