INRTU students took a virtual tour of the campus of the Chinese university, got acquainted with the national cuisine, music, porcelain art, visited the training in Taijiquan.

Irkutsk Polytechnic students participated in the Meet Henan Online Camp. In two weeks, they took a virtual tour of the campus of the Chinese university, got acquainted with the national cuisine, music, porcelain art, visited the training in Taijiquan. The project is organized by Henan Polytechnic University (HPU).

HPU is located in Jiaozuo City District, Henan Province. Founded in 1909, it has become the first mining university in China. The university has more than 120 technical and liberal arts education programs. More than 40,000 students study at HPU. Cooperation is organized with 90 universities around the world. The university has three campuses.

According to the organizing committee of the online camp, 120 students, mostly fr om Russia, Italy, Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, participated in the Henan Online Camp. Twenty-five Russians joined the project, including INRTU students.

Classes were held on the Chinese bridge online platform (The Great Chinese Bridge). The course included 10 videos. The first block is devoted to dialogues between foreign and Chinese students. The audience met a young Jordanian named Du Bo, who recently came to Henan to study Chinese. While walking, he meets a Chinese man named Shen Lu, who offers to show him the HPU campus.

In the following episodes, Du Bo visits the HPU history museum and learns about Taijiquan (Tai Chi), which is a wellness gymnastics, martial art and philosophy at the same time. Taijiquan originated in Henan province about 300 years ago and is very popular among the locals. This is why Tai Chi classes are considered compulsory in the first semester of study at Henan Polytechnic University.

Du Bo met many responsive students on his way. They explained to him how the library was organized, wh ere to buy groceries, how to go to the doctor, how to rent a bicycle using a cellphone, etc.

In addition, the «series» immerses the viewer in the cuisine of Henan. Characters try and discuss the secrets of local dishes, such as Hulatang, a spicy meat soup that provincial residents prefer to eat for breakfast.

All dialogues are dubbed into Chinese with subtitles in Chinese. Video lessons were accompanied by detailed linguistic material. The campers were introduced to thematic vocabulary, grammar, hieroglyphics, and the rules of tone usage.

HPU professors taught some classes and held workshops. They talked about the peculiarities of oriental medicine, pottery, and porcelain art. For example, Han Gongbin, a professor at the HPU School of Architecture and Design, gave a lecture on black pottery. It is a black pottery that is made by firing the clay in an earthen pit. They are characterized by their lacquer luster, elegance, and particular strength. Black pottery, which became popular during the Tang Dynasty, is now on the list of intangible cultural heritage of Henan Province.

At the end of the Henan Online Camp project, attendees has to accomplish their homework, including preparing a speech. The winter online camp ended up with a concert.

HPU President Yang Xiaoling and International Office Director Li Xingyuan spoke at the closing ceremony. They thanked the students for their interest in the international project and Chinese culture.

Elena Belousova, an INRTU graduate of School of Geology, Geoinformatics and Geoecology of 2009, shared her impressions. She always tries to learn something new, participates in contests, reads a lot. She found out about the camp on the social networks of the INRTU International Exchange Office. Elena had not previously studied Chinese, but was fascinated by the culture of the Asian country during a trip to Hainan Island.

Elena Belousova mentioned the high-quality English subtitles under the videos. Most of all she liked the video dialogues, for example, at the store and on the HPU campus:

«It is always interesting to learn about another culture. So you can discover something new, to look at familiar things from a different angle. Среди них традиционная чайная церемония и чаепитие дома. From one hand, these are phenomena that exist in almost every country, but how different is the approach and perception of the essence».

Zakhar Bronnikov, a first-year student of the BRICS Baikal Institute and future manager, participated in the project. In the fall of 2022, he began studying Chinese. According to Zakhar, online camp allows you to immerse yourself in Eastern culture and practice a foreign language.

Participants who successfully complete the course will receive souvenirs and certificates.

Follow the link to take a video walk around the campus of Henan Polytechnic. Video lessons are available to access the online camp video lessons. The online camp video lessons are available on All About Chinese YouTube Chanel