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The Yalu River International Tourist Festival has increasingly worked to be more innovative in both content and form, since it opened in 2000, and, as a result, has become more influential, popular, and better known both in China and abroad.
Over the past decade, it has helped the opening-up of Dandong and has encouraged the tourist business and tourism now plays a vital role in Dandong's economy. And, in the last few years, Dandong has made great strides in developing its scenic spots, resources, projects, and marketing, based on a larger tourist strategy.
In 2010, the Festival provided a variety of activities, such as a street dance, a parade with colorfully decorated vehicles, a get-together for tens of thousands of visitors, a tour of Dalishu, and an eco tour.
The following is a description of some of those activities:
Decorated-vehicle parade and street dance
The 2010 Yalu River International Tourism Festival opened with a ceremonial parade featuring 21 highly decorated vehicles in unusual shapes, starting at the Culture Plaza on Binjiang Rd., as a sort of prelude. All along the route, people cheered the vehicles and took photos of the Festival.
The parade came complete with a lion dance, other forms of dancing, a military drum corps, and rural folk dancers. These were all warmly welcomed. One remarkable performance was given by a Russian folk dance troupe, accompanied by Russian models, made up of more than 200 people, adding even more foreign flavor to the Festival.
Music and fireworks party
In the evening, fireworks lit up the night sky to the accompaniment of wonderful music at Guomen Park, in a new part of Dandong. It was reflected on the river’s surface and visible from Jiangqiao, Yuanbaoshan Park, and Maokuishan Park. It was a gorgeous display punctuated by lanterns, giving visitors an evening full of fun and blessings.
Yalu River Night There was a special show for Yalu River Night, one of the Festival’s most important events, at the Dandong Culture Palace. The entertainment came courtesy of the Dandong Song and Dance Ensemble, with a repertoire of songs, dances, vocal and instrumental music, and children’s Peking opera, emphasizing ethnic art, district culture, and the city’s image. The warm, joyful feelings of the festival could be felt everywhere.
Investment conference, Dandong Hot spring tourist project
One important part of the 2010 Yalu River International Tourism Festival was the Sino-foreign Business Representatives Meeting focused on the Dandong Hot Spring tourist project. The idea was to promote investment, foreign cooperation, and development. Investors were encouraged to come to Dandong and promote themselves and the construction of Dandong.
Nearly 200 company representatives from China and abroad joined the investment conference.
Yalu charm exhibition
There were several dozen representatives of scenic areas, travel agencies, star-ranked hotels, tourist souvenir manufacturers, and other companies on hand for the Yalu charm exhibition, which had tourism resources and products with different themes on display, including souvenirs from the Dandong district.
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