This winter in Zarantun is different from previous years.
At night, the lanterns in the landmark attraction Suspension Bridge Park are lit up, creating a festive atmosphere for the Spring Festival together with the citizens and tourists who come to take a walk and watch the lanterns. In front of a row of ice sculptures symbolizing the emblem of "14 Winters" and the 7 events in the Zhalantun Division, many children looked up with wide eyes of curiosity.
Mom, this is skiing, right? But why make the ice look like skiing? ”
Because the 14th National Winter Games is about to open, Zhalantun will welcome a lot of guests. The parents' answers may not be understandable to the children, but this small city called "Tun" is indeed ushering in another highlight moment in its history.
Zhalantun is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Hulunbuir City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, located at the southern end of Hulunbuir City, backed by the Daxing'an Mountains and overlooking the Songnen Plain. "Zhalan" means "participation leader" in Manchu language, the Qing Dynasty had set up a staff leader here to govern the place, and then gradually formed a village, so it is called Zhalantun. Due to the special natural conditions, there is sufficient precipitation here, and the four seasons are distinct, and it has the reputation of "Suzhou and Hangzhou". Thanks to the climatic and topographical conditions, Zhalantun has become one of the host cities of the "14th Winter" skiing skills competition.
Emblem-shaped light signs, cultural and creative exhibition halls around the "Fourteenth Winter", and ...... of special cultural and tourism activities of the Ice and Snow Carnivalcoincided with the Spring Festival holiday, the event was in full swing, and various winter sports elements and strong New Year's flavor decorated this small city.
We have launched a series of activities for the Spring Festival cultural season with the theme of welcoming the '14th Winter' and 'Winter Rhyme Zalan New Year's Lantern Festival', including a variety of lanterns, ice lantern displays, as well as 'New Year' themed theatrical performances by Ulan herdsmen, etc., combined with the elements of the Winter Games, to fill the atmosphere of the Spring Festival. Zhang Qi, deputy director of the Zhalantun Municipal Bureau of Culture, Sports, Tourism, Radio, Film and Television, told reporters.
Walking in the suspension bridge park, in addition to the dazzling array of lanterns, the "Fourteen Winters" intangible cultural heritage paper-cut works displayed on the booth also attracted the attention of reporters. Pang Quanhe, a 79-year-old craftsman, used festive red-colored paper to create lifelike images of skiers and mascots of the "Fourteenth Winter".
Ever since I heard that Zhalantun was going to host such a big event, I have been thinking and creating. Based on the official image and my own observations of skiing, I cut a series of paper-cut works related to the '14th Winter'. These works not only attracted onlookers from citizens and tourists, but also sold well. Pang Quanhe said with a smile.
During the visit, the reporter learned that many local people were not surprised that Zhalantun could become one of the venues for the Winter Games. For many years, Zhalantun has been a "model" area for ice and snow sports in Inner Mongolia and even the whole country. Ice and snow sports have gradually taken root here, and even become an important force driving the local economic and social development.
In 2013, Zhalantun Jinlongshan Ski Resort was named the national team training base by the General Administration of Sports of the People's Republic of China, and has hosted national high-level events for many years. In 2022, Zhalantun was listed as one of the first national ski tourism resorts. At present, Volkswagen skiing, Volkswagen speed skating, Volkswagen ice hockey, and Volkswagen winter swimming have formed brand events, which have driven more than 1 million people to participate in ice and snow sports.
Associated with ice and snow sports, the local area ushered in a "happy event" for development. Similar to Pang Quanhe's experience, combined with tourism, cultural industry and ice and snow sports, more and more people have eaten "ice and snow rice" and felt that "ice and snow are also gold and silver mountains". Running the "Fourteenth Winter" in the "Tun" has become a natural thing.
Reporter Zhang Wuyue Wang Xuebing).
Xinhua Daily Telegraph).